Multi-input Schrödinger equation: controllability, tracking, and application to the quantum angular momentum

International audienceWe present a sufficient condition for approximate controllability of the bilinear discrete-spectrum Schrödinger equation exploiting the use of several controls. The controllability result extends to simultaneous controllability, approximate controllability in $H^s$, and tracking in modulus. The result is more general than those present in the literature even in the case of one control and permits to treat situations in which the spectrum of the uncontrolled operator is very degenerate (e.g. it has multiple eigenvalues or equal gaps among different pairs of eigenvalues). We apply the general result to a rotating polar linear molecule, driven by three orthogonal external fields. A remarkable property of this model is the presence of infinitely many degeneracies and resonances in the spectrum preventing the application of the results in the literature

Control of the bilinear Schrödinger equation for fully coupling potentials

International audienceWe present a general result of approximate controllability for the bilinear Schrödinger equation (with wave function varying in the unit sphere of an infinite dimensional Hilbert space), under the hypothesis that the Schrödinger operator has discrete spectrum and that the control potential couples all eigenstates. The control method is based on a tracking procedure for the Galerkin approximations, lifted in SU(n). The method allows to estimate the L 1 norm of the control laws achieving controllability

Regular propagators of bilinear quantum systems

The present analysis deals with the regularity of solutions of bilinear control systems of the type $x'=(A+u(t)B)x$where the state $x$ belongs to some complex infinite dimensional Hilbert space, the (possibly unbounded) linear operators $A$ and $B$ are skew-adjoint and the control $u$ is a real valued function. Such systems arise, for instance, in quantum control with the bilinear Schr\"{o}dinger equation. For the sake of the regularity analysis, we consider a more general framework where $A$ and $B$ are generators of contraction semi-groups.Under some hypotheses on the commutator of the operators $A$ and $B$, it is possible to extend the definition of solution for controls in the set of Radon measures to obtain precise a priori energy estimates on the solutions, leading to a natural extension of the celebrated noncontrollability result of Ball, Marsden, and Slemrod in 1982. Complementary material to this analysis can be found in [hal-01537743v1

A weak spectral condition for the controllability of the bilinear Schrödinger equation with application to the control of a rotating planar molecule

International audienceIn this paper we prove an approximate controllability result for the bilinear Schrödinger equation. This result requires less restrictive non-resonance hypotheses on the spectrum of the uncontrolled Schrödinger operator than those present in the literature. The control operator is not required to be bounded and we are able to extend the controllability result to the density matrices. The proof is based on fine controllability properties of the finite dimensional Galerkin approximations and allows to get estimates for the $L^{1}$ norm of the control. The general controllability result is applied to the problem of controlling the rotation of a bipolar rigid molecule confined on a plane by means of two orthogonal external fields

Beyond the Fokker-Planck equation: Pathwise control of noisy bistable systems

We introduce a new method, allowing to describe slowly time-dependent Langevin equations through the behaviour of individual paths. This approach yields considerably more information than the computation of the probability density. The main idea is to show that for sufficiently small noise intensity and slow time dependence, the vast majority of paths remain in small space-time sets, typically in the neighbourhood of potential wells. The size of these sets often has a power-law dependence on the small parameters, with universal exponents. The overall probability of exceptional paths is exponentially small, with an exponent also showing power-law behaviour. The results cover time spans up to the maximal Kramers time of the system. We apply our method to three phenomena characteristic for bistable systems: stochastic resonance, dynamical hysteresis and bifurcation delay, where it yields precise bounds on transition probabilities, and the distribution of hysteresis areas and first-exit times. We also discuss the effect of coloured noise.Comment: 37 pages, 11 figure

Photovoltaics: An Investigation into the Origins of Efficiency on All Scales

This project is comprised of a set of parallel investigations, which share the common mo- tivation of increasing the efficiency of photovoltaics. First, the reader is introduced to core concepts of photovoltaic energy conversion via a semi-classical description of the phys- ical system. Second, a key player in photovoltaic efficiency calculations, the exciton, is discussed in greater quantum mechanical detail. The reader will be taken through a nu- merical derivation of the low-energy exciton states in various geometries, including a line segment, a circle and a sphere. These numerical calculations are done using Mathematica, a computer program which, due to its powerful symbolic programming language and so- phisticated built-in algorithms, is widely used for computational physics. The instructions for replicating the calculations are provided. Finally, the reader will be introduced to the experimentation I performed throughout the year, involving the purchasing, assembling and testing of miniature solar cells. In reading this paper, the reader will begin to gain an understanding of the landscape of photovoltaics and the factors that affect their efficiency, as well as the avenues by which we might hope to achieve an increase in that efficiency in the near future