Mapping the system evolution of a two-state system allows the determination of the effective system Hamiltonian directly. We show how this can be achieved even if the system is decohering appreciably over the observation time. A method to include various decoherence models is given and the limits of this technique are explored. This technique is applicable both to the problem of calibrating a control Hamiltonian for quantum computing applications and for precision experiments in two-state quantum systems. For simple models of decoherence, this method can be applied even when the decoherence time is comparable to the oscillation period of the system.
A direct classical analog of the quantum dynamics of intrinsic decoherence in Hamiltonian systems, characterized by the time dependence of the linear entropy of the reduced density operator, is introduced. The similarities and differences between the classical and quantum decoherence dynamics of an initial quantum state are exposed using both analytical and computational results. In particular, the classicality of early-time intrinsic decoherence dynamics is explored analytically using a second-order perturbative treatment, and an interesting connection between decoherence rates and the stabil…
Enviroment - caused dissipation disrupts the hamiltonian evolution of all quantum systems not fully isolated from any bath. We propose and examine a feedback-control scheme to eliminate such dissipation, by tracking the free hamiltonian evolution. We determine a driving-field that maximizes the projection of the actual molecular system onto the freely propagated one. The evolution of a model two level system in a dephasing bath is followed, and the driving field that overcomes the decoherence is calculated. An implementation of the scheme in the laboratory using feedback control is suggested.
There are many formalisms to describe quantum decoherence. However, many of them give a non general and ad hoc definition of "pointer basis" or "moving preferred basis", and this fact is a problem for the decoherence program. In this paper we will consider quantum systems under a general theoretical framework for decoherence and we will present a tentative definition of the moving preferred basis. These ideas are implemented in a well-known open system model. The obtained decoherence and the relaxation times are defined and compared with those of the literature for the Lee- Friedrichs model.
Decoherence in Markovian systems can result indirectly from the action of a system Hamiltonian which is usually fixed and unavoidable. Here, we show that in general in Markovian systems, because of the system Hamiltonian, quantum information decoheres. We give conditions for the system Hamiltonian that must be satisfied if coherence is to be preserved. Finally, we show how to construct robust subspaces for quantum information processing.
We study the interaction of a two-level atom and two fields, one of them classical. We obtain an effective Hamiltonian for this system by using a method recently introduced that produces a small rotation to the Hamiltonian that allows to neglect some terms in the rotated Hamiltonian. Then we solve a variation of the Schrödinger equation that models decoherence as the system evolves through intrinsic mechanisms beyond conventional quantum mechanics rather than dissipative interaction with an environment.
Superselection rules induced by the interaction with the environment are a basis to understand the emergence of classical observables within quantum theory. The aim of this article is to investigate the decoherence effects, which lead to superselection sectors, with the help of exactly soluble Hamiltonian models. Starting from the examples of Araki and of Zurek more general models with scattering are presented for which the projection operators onto the induced superselection sectors do no longer commute with the Hamiltonian. The example of an environment given by a free quantum field indicate…
For many implementations of quantum computing, 1/f and other types of broad-spectrum noise are an important source of decoherence. An important step forward would be the ability to back out the characteristics of this noise from qubit measurements and to see if it leads to new physical effects. For certain types of qubits, the working point of the qubit can be varied. Using a new mathematical method that is suited to treat all working points, we present theoretical results that show how this degree of freedom can be used to extract noise parameters and to predict a new effect: noise-induced lo…
According to our modal-Hamiltonian interpretation (MHI) of quantum mechanics, the Hamiltonian of the closed system defines the set of its definite-valued observables. This definition seems to be incompatible with the pointer basis selected by the environment-induced decoherence (EID) of the open system. In this paper we argue that decoherence can be understood from a closed system perspective which (i) shows that the incompatibility between MHI and EID is only apparent, and (ii) solves certain conceptual challenges that the EID program still has to face.
It is commonly known that the dephasing in open quantum systems is due to the establishment of bipartite correlations with ambient environments, which are typically difficult to be fully characterized. Recently, a new approach of average over disordered Hamiltonian ensemble is developed and shown to be capable of describing the nonclassicality of incoherent dynamics based on inferring the nonclassical nature of the correlations. Here we further extend the approach of Hamiltonian ensemble in the canonical form to the realm of structural disorder. Under the variable separation of the probability…
The decoherence of two initially entangled qubits in a non-Markovian reservoir has been investigated exactly without Born Markovian approximation and rotating-wave approximation(RWA). The non-perturbative quantum master equation is derived and its exact solution is obtained. The decoherence behaviors of two qubits, initially entangled in Bell states, has been investigated in three different cases of parameters. The results show that the counter-rotating wave terms have great influence on the decoherence behavior, and there are differences between the exact solution of the Hamiltonian with RWA …
We consider environment induced decoherence of quantum superpositions to mixtures in the limit in which that process is much faster than any competing one generated by the Hamiltonian $H_{\rm sys}$ of the isolated system. While the golden rule then does not apply we can discard $H_{\rm sys}$. By allowing for simultaneous couplings to different reservoirs, we reveal decoherence as a universal short-time phenomenon independent of the character of the system as well as the bath and of the basis the superimposed states are taken from. We discuss consequences for the classical behavior of the macro…
We consider a free charged particle interacting with an electromagnetic bath at zero temperature. The dipole approximation is used to treat the bath wavelengths larger than the width of the particle wave packet. The effect of these wavelengths is described then by a linear Hamiltonian whose form is analogous to phenomenological Hamiltonians previously adopted to describe the free particle-bath interaction. We study how the time dependence of decoherence evolution is related with initial particle-bath correlations. We show that decoherence is related to the time dependent dressing of the partic…
Giant atoms are a new paradigm of quantum optics going beyond the usual local coupling. Building on this, a new type of decoherence-free (DF) many-body Hamiltonians was shown in a broadband waveguide. Here, these are incorporated in a general framework (not relying on master equations) and contrasted to dispersive DF Hamiltonians with normal atoms: the two schemes are shown to correspond to qualitatively different ways to match the same general condition for suppressing decoherence. Next, we map the giant atoms dynamics into a cascaded collision model (CM), providing an intuitive interpretatio…
In Phys. Rev. A {\bf 71}, 060312(R) (2005) the robustness of the local adiabatic quantum search to decoherence in the instantaneous eigenbasis of the search Hamiltonian was examined. We expand this analysis to include the case of the global adiabatic quantum search. As in the case of the local search the asymptotic time complexity for the global search is the same as for the ideal closed case, as long as the Hamiltonian dynamics is present. In the case of pure decoherence, where the environment monitors the search Hamiltonian, we find that the time complexity of the global quantum adiabatic se…
Quantum annealing (QA) is a promising method for solving combinatorial optimization problems whose solutions are embedded into a ground state of the Ising Hamiltonian. This method employs two types of Hamiltonians: a driver Hamiltonian and a problem Hamiltonian. After a sufficiently slow change from the driver Hamiltonian to the problem Hamiltonian, we can obtain the target ground state that corresponds to the solution. The inclusion of non-stoquastic terms in the driver Hamiltonian is believed to enhance the efficiency of the QA. Meanwhile, decoherence is regarded as of the main obstacles for…
Overlapping resonances are shown to provide new insights into the extent of decoherence experienced by a system superposition state in the regime of strong system- environment coupling. As an example of this general approach, a generic system comprising spin-half particles interacting with a thermalized oscillator environment is considered. We find that (a) amongst the collection of parametrized Hamiltonians, the larger the overlapping resonances contribution, the greater the maximum possible purity, and (b) for a fixed Hamiltonian, the larger the overlapping resonances contribution, the large…
We consider environment induced decoherence of quantum superpositions to mixtures in the limit in which that process is much faster than any competing one generated by the Hamiltonian $H_{\rm sys}$ of the isolated system. This interaction dominated decoherence limit has previously not found much attention even though it is of importance for the emergence of classical behavior in the macroworld, since it will always be the relevant regime for large enough separations between superposed wave packets. The usual golden-rule treatment then does not apply but we can employ a short-time expansion for…
Shortcuts to adiabaticity provide a general approach to mimic adiabatic quantum processes via arbitrarily fast evolutions in Hilbert space. For these counter-diabatic evolutions, higher speed comes at higher energy cost. Here, the counter-diabatic theory is employed as a minimal energy demanding scheme for speeding up adiabatic tasks. As a by-product, we show that this approach can be used to obtain infinite classes of transitionless models, including time-independent Hamiltonians under certain conditions over the eigenstates of the original Hamiltonian. We apply these results to investigate s…
Decoherence of a quantum system (which then starts to display classical features) results from the interaction of the system with the environment, and is well described in the framework of the theory of continuous quantum measurements (CQM). Reviewed are the various approaches to the CQM theory, and the approach based on the effective complex Hamiltonians is discussed in greater detail. The effective complex Hamiltonian is derived from the restricted path integral, which emphasizes the role of information in the dynamics of the system being measured. The complex Hamiltonian is used for analyzi…
A general method for obtaining the decoherence time in self-induced decoherence is presented. In particular, it is shown that such a time can be computed from the poles of the resolvent or of the initial conditions in the complex extension of the Hamiltonian's spectrum. Several decoherence times are estimated: $10^{-13}-$ $10^{-15}s$ for microscopic systems, and $10^{-37}-10^{-39}s$ for macroscopic bodies. For the particular case of a thermal bath, our results agree with those obtained by the einselection (environment-induced decoherence) approach.
We analyze decoherence-free (DF) quantum information in the presence of an arbitrary non-nearest-neighbor bath-induced system Hamiltonian using a Markovian master equation. We show that the most appropriate encoding for N qubits is probably contained within the ~(2/9) N excitation subspace. We give a timescale over which one would expect to apply other methods to correct for the system Hamiltonian. In order to remain applicable to experiment, we then focus on small systems, and present examples of DF quantum information for three and four qubits. We give an encoding for four qubits that, while…
Within the decoherence theory we investigate the physical background of the condition of the separability (diagonalizability in noncorrelated basis) of the interaction Hamiltonian of the composite system, "system plus environment". It proves that the condition of the separability may serve as a criterion for defining "system", but so that "system" cannot be defined unless it is simultaneously defined with its "environment". When extended to a set of the mutually interacting composite systems, this result implies that the separability conditions of the local interactions are mutually tied. The …
Refocalization sequences in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) can in principle reverse the coherent evolution under the secular dipolar Hamiltonian of a closed system. We use this experimental strategy to study the effect of irreversible decoherence on the signal amplitude attenuation in a single crystal hydrated salt where the nuclear spin system consists in the set of hydration water proton spins having a strong coupling within each pair and a much weaker coupling with other pairs. We study the experimental response of attenuation times with temperature, crystal orientation with respect to th…
The three-spin-$1/2$ decoherence-free subsystem defines a logical qubit protected from collective noise and supports exchange-only universal gates. Such logical qubits are well-suited for implementation with electrically-defined quantum dots. Exact exchange-only entangling logical gates exist but are challenging to construct and understand. We use a decoupling strategy to obtain straightforward approximate entangling gates. A benefit of the strategy is that if the physical spins are aligned, then it can implement evolution under entangling Hamiltonians. Hamiltonians expressible as linear combi…
In this paper we review Castagnino's contributions to the foundations of quantum mechanics. First, we recall his work on quantum decoherence in closed systems, and the proposal of a general framework for decoherence from which the phenomenon acquires a conceptually clear meaning. Then, we introduce his contribution to the hard field of the interpretation of quantum mechanics: the modal-Hamiltonian interpretation solves many of the interpretive problems of the theory, and manifests its physical relevance in its application to many traditional models of the practice of physics. In the third part…
We present a simple theoretical description of two recent experiments where damping of Rabi oscillations, which cannot be attributed to dissipative decoherence, has been observed. This is obtained considering the evolution time or the Hamiltonian as random variables and then averaging the usual unitary evolution on a properly defined, model-independent, probability distribution.
We investigate decoherence in the limit where the interaction with the environment is weak and the evolution is dominated by the self Hamiltonian of the system. We show that in this case quantized eigenstates of energy emerge as pointer states selected through the predictability sieve.
We study a general quantum system interacting with environment modeled by the bosonic heat bath of Caldeira and Leggett type. General interaction Hamiltonians are considered that commute with the system's Hamiltonian so that there is no energy exchange between the system and bath. We argue that this model provides an appropriate description of adiabatic quantum decoherence, i.e., loss of entanglement on time scales short compared to those of thermal relaxation processes associated with energy exchange with the bath. The interaction Hamiltonian is then proportional to a conserved "pointer obser…
Feedback control is expected to considerably protect quantum states against decoherence caused by interaction between the system and environment. Especially, Markovian feedback scheme developed by Wiseman can modify the properties of decoherence and eventually recover the purity of the steadystate of the corresponding master equation. This paper provides a condition for which the modified master equation has a pure steady state. By applying this condition to a two-qubit system, we obtain a complete parametrization of the feedback Hamiltonian such that the steady state becomes a maximally entan…
Transport phenomena on a quantum scale appear in a variety of systems, ranging from photosynthetic complexes to engineered quantum devices. It has been predicted that the efficiency of quantum transport can be enhanced through dynamic interaction between the system and a noisy environment. We report the first experimental demonstration of such environment-assisted quantum transport, using an engineered network of laser-written waveguides, with relative energies and inter-waveguide couplings tailored to yield the desired Hamiltonian. Controllable decoherence is simulated via broadening the band…
Decoherence of a quantum system induced by the interaction with its environment (measuring medium) may be presented phenomenologically as a continuous (or repeated) fuzzy quantum measurement. The dynamics of the system subject to continuous decoherence (measurement) may be described by the complex-Hamiltonian Schroedinger equation, stochastic Schroedinger equation of a certain type or (nonselectively) by the Lindblad master equation. The formulation of this dynamics with the help of restricted path integrals shows that the dynamics of the measured system depends only on the information recorde…
The destruction of entanglement of open quantum systems by decoherence is investigated in the asymptotic long-time limit. Starting from a general and analytically solvable decoherence model which does not involve any weak-coupling or Markovian assumption it is shown that two fundamentally different classes of entangled states can be distinguished. Quantum states of the first class are fragile against decoherence so that they can be disentangled asymptotically even if coherences between pointer states are still present. Quantum states of the second type are robust against decoherence. Asymptoti…
We have studied the effect of a non-Hermitian Bosonic bath on the dynamics of a two-level spin system. The non-Hermitian Hamiltonian of the bath is chosen such that it converges to the harmonic oscillator Hamiltonian when the non-Hermiticity is switched off. We calculate the dynamics of the spin system and found that the non-Hermiticity can have positive as well as negative effects on the coherence of the system. However, the decoherence can be completely eliminated by choosing the non-Hermiticity parameter and the phase of the system bath interaction appropriately. We have also studied the ef…
The dynamics of a spin-1/2 particle coupled to a nuclear spin bath through an isotropic Heisenberg interaction is studied, as a model for the spin decoherence in quantum dots. The time-dependent polarization of the central spin is calculated as a function of the bath-spin distribution and the polarizations of the initial bath state. For short times, the polarization of the central spin shows a gaussian decay, and at later times it revives displaying nonmonotonic time dependence. The decoherence time scale dep ends on moments of the bath-spin distribuition, and also on the polarization strength…
We examine two exactly solvable models of decoherence -- a central spin-system, (i) with and (ii) without a self--Hamiltonian, interacting with a collection of environment spins. In the absence of a self--Hamiltonian we show that in this model (introduced some time ago to illustrate environment--induced superselection) generic assumptions about the coupling strengths can lead to a universal (Gaussian) suppression of coherence between pointer states. On the other hand, we show that when the dynamics of the central spin is dominant a different regime emerges, which is characterized by a non--Gau…
We propose an effective Hamiltonian approach to investigate decoherence of a quantum system in a non-Markovian reservoir, naturally imposing the complete positivity on the reduced dynamics of the system. The formalism is based on the notion of an effective reservoir, i.e., certain collective degrees of freedom in the reservoir that are responsible for the decoherence. As examples for completely positive decoherence, we present three typical decoherence processes for a qubit such as dephasing, depolarizing, and amplitude-damping. The effects of the non-Markovian decoherence are compared to the …
We consider departures from hamiltonian dynamics in the evolution of neutral kaons due to their interactions with environment that generate entanglement among them. We propose a phenomenological model of stochastic re-scattering and estimate the coefficients of the effective hamiltonian and decoherence terms. Finally we analyze the interplay between the weak interaction and matter effects and propose the observables suitable to measure the matter characteristics of CPT violation and decoherence.
To protect a quantum system from decoherence due to interaction with its environment, we investigate the existence of initial states of the environment allowing for decoherence-free evolution of the system. For models in which a two-state system interacts with a dynamical environment, we prove that such states exist if and only if the interaction and self-evolution Hamiltonians share an eigenstate. If decoherence by state preparation is not possible, we show that initial states minimizing decoherence result from a delicate compromise between the environment and interaction dynamics.
Universal quantum computation on decoherence-free subspaces and subsystems (DFSs) is examined with particular emphasis on using only physically relevant interactions. A necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of decoherence-free (noiseless) subsystems in the Markovian regime is derived here for the first time. A stabilizer formalism for DFSs is then developed which allows for the explicit understanding of these in their dual role as quantum error correcting codes. Conditions for the existence of Hamiltonians whose induced evolution always preserves a DFS are derived within this st…
The notion that decoherence rapidly reduces a superposition state to an incoherent mixture implicitly adopts a special representation, namely, the representation of preferred (pointer) states (PS). For weak or strong system-environment coupling, PS is known to be the energy eigenstates of the system Hamiltonian or the eigenstates of the system-environment interaction Hamiltonian. Via a simple dynamical model that simulates a two-level system interacting with few other degrees of freedom as its environment, it is shown that even for intermediate system-environment coupling, approximate PS may s…
The robustness of the local adiabatic quantum search to decoherence in the instantaneous eigenbasis of the search Hamiltonian is examined. We demonstrate that the asymptotic time-complexity of the ideal closed case is preserved, as long as the Hamiltonian dynamics is present. In the special case of pure decoherence where the environment monitors the search Hamiltonian, it is shown that the local adiabatic quantum search performs as the classical search.
We show via an explicit example that quantum anomalies can lead to decoherence of a single quantum qubit through phase relaxation. The anomaly causes the Hamiltonian to develop a non-self-adjoint piece due to the non-invariance of the domain of the Hamiltonian under symmetry transformation. The resulting decoherence originates completely from the dynamics of the system itself and not, as usually considered, from interactions with the environment.
The coupling of a mesoscopic system with its environment usually causes total decoherence: at long times the reduced density matrix of the system evolves in time to a limit which is independent of its initial value, losing all the quantum information stored in its initial state. Under special circumstances, a subspace of the system's Hilbert space remains coherent, or "decoherence free", and the reduced density matrix approaches a non-trivial limit which contains information on its initial quantum state, despite the coupling to the environment. This situation is called "partial decoherence". H…
We show that trapped ions can be used to simulate a highly symmetrical Hamiltonian with eingenstates naturally protected against local sources of decoherence. This Hamiltonian involves long range coupling between particles and provides a more efficient protection than nearest neighbor models discussed in previous works. Our results open the perspective of experimentally realizing in controlled atomic systems, complex entangled states with decoherence times up to nine orders of magnitude longer than isolated quantum systems.
We derive and investigate a general non-Markovian equation for the time-dependence of a Hamiltonian that maximizes the fidelity of a desired quantum gate on any finite-dimensional quantum system in the presence of arbitrary bath and noise sources. The method is illustrated for a single-qubit gate implemented on a three-level system.
The interplay of unitary evolution and local measurements in many-body systems gives rise to a stochastic state evolution and to measurement-induced phase transitions in the pure state entanglement. In realistic settings, however, this dynamics may be spoiled by decoherence, e.g., dephasing, due to coupling to an environment or measurement imperfections. We investigate the impact of dephasing and the inevitable evolution into a non-Gaussian, mixed state, on the dynamics of monitored fermions. We approach it from three complementary perspectives: (i) the exact solution of the conditional master…
We consider interactions that generate a universal set of quantum gates on logical qubits encoded in a collective-dephasing-free subspace, and discuss their implementations with trapped ions. This allows for the removal of the by-far largest source of decoherence in current trapped-ion experiments, collective dephasing. In addition, an explicit parametrization of all two-body Hamiltonians able to generate such gates without the system's state ever exiting the protected subspace is provided.
A longstanding challenge in the foundations of quantum mechanics is the verification of alternative collapse theories despite their mathematical similarity to decoherence. To this end, we suggest a novel method based on dynamical decoupling. Experimental observation of nonzero saturation of the decoupling error in the limit of fast decoupling operations can provide evidence for alternative quantum theories. As part of the analysis we prove that unbounded Hamiltonians can always be decoupled, and provide novel dilations of Lindbladians.
We study the problem of robust performance of quantum systems under structured uncertainties. A specific feature of closed (Hamiltonian) quantum systems is that their poles lie on the imaginary axis and that neither a coherent controller nor physically relevant structured uncertainties can alter this situation. This changes for open systems where decoherence ensures asymptotic stability and creates a unique landscape of pure performance robustness, with the distinctive feature that closed-loop stability is secured by the underlying physics and needs not be enforced. This stability, however, is…
We discuss a few mathematical aspects of random dynamical decoupling, a key tool procedure in quantum information theory. In particular, we place it in the context of discrete stochastic processes, limit theorems and CPT semigroups on matrix algebras. We obtain precise analytical expressions for expectation and variance of the density matrix and fidelity over time in the continuum-time limit depending on the system Lindbladian, which then lead to rough short-time estimates depending only on certain coupling strengths. We prove that dynamical decoupling does not work in the case of intrinsic (i…
The aim of this paper is to review a new perspective about decoherence, according to which formalisms originally devised to deal just with closed or open systems can be subsumed under a closed-system approach that generalizes the traditional account of the phenomenon. This new viewpoint dissolves certain conceptual difficulties of the orthodox open-system approach but, at the same time, shows that the openness of the quantum system is not the essential ingredient for decoherence, as commonly claimed. Moreover, when the behavior of a decoherent system is described from a closed-system perspecti…
This work proposes a series of quantum experiments that can, at least in principle, allow for examining microscopic mechanisms associated with decoherence. These experiments can be interpreted as a quantum-mechanical version of non-equilibrium mixing between two volumes separated by a thin interface. One of the principal goals of such experiments is in identifying non-equilibrium conditions when time-symmetric laws give way to time-directional, irreversible processes, which are represented by decoherence at the quantum level. The rate of decoherence is suggested to be examined indirectly, with…
We study two different decoherence modes for entangled qubits by considering a Liouville - von Neumann master equation. Mode A is determined by projection operators onto the eigenstates of the Hamiltonian and mode B by projectors onto rotated states. We present solutions for general and for Bell diagonal states and calculate for the later the mixedness and the amount of entanglement given by the concurrence. We propose a realization of the decoherence modes within neutron interferometry by applying fluctuating magnetic fields. An experimental test of the Kraus operator decomposition describing…
We develop a technique for finding the dynamical evolution in time of an averaged density matrix. The result is an equation of evolution that includes an Effective Hamiltonian, as well as decoherence terms in Lindblad form. Applying the general equation to harmonic Hamiltonians, we confirm a previous formula for the Effective Hamiltonian together with a new decoherence term which should in general be included, and whose vanishing provides the criteria for validity of the Effective Hamiltonian approach. Finally, we apply the theory to examples of the AC Stark Shift and Three- Level Raman Transi…
Our account of the problem of the classical limit of quantum mechanics involves two elements. The first one is self-induced decoherence, conceived as a process that depends on the own dynamics of a closed quantum system governed by a Hamiltonian with continuous spectrum; the study of decoherence is addressed by means of a formalism used to give meaning to the van Hove states with diagonal singularities. The second element is macroscopicity: when the macroscopic limit is applied to the Wigner transformation of the diagonal state resulting from decoherence, the description of the quantum system …
Decoherence-Free Subsystems (DFS) are a powerful means of protecting quantum information against noise with known symmetry properties. Although Hamiltonians theoretically exist that can implement a universal set of logic gates on DFS encoded qubits without ever leaving the protected subsystem, the natural Hamiltonians that are available in specific implementations do not necessarily have this property. Here we describe some of the principles that can be used in such cases to operate on encoded qubits without losing the protection offered by the DFS. In particular, we show how dynamical decoupl…
