Superstatistics Based on the Microcanonical Ensemble

Superstatistics is a "statistics" of "canonical-ensemble statistics". In analogy, we consider here a similar theoretical construct, but based upon the microcanonical ensemble. The mixing parameter is not the temperature but the index q associated with the non-extensive, power law entropy Sq.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figure

Some Features of the Conditional qq-Entropies of Composite Quantum Systems

The study of conditional $q$-entropies in composite quantum systems has recently been the focus of considerable interest, particularly in connection with the problem of separability. The $q$-entropies depend on the density matrix $\rho$ through the quantity $\omega_q = Tr\rho^q$, and admit as a particular instance the standard von Neumann entropy in the limit case $q\to 1$. A comprehensive numerical survey of the space of pure and mixed states of bipartite systems is here performed, in order to determine the volumes in state space occupied by those states exhibiting various special properties related to the signs of their conditional $q$-entropies and to their connections with other separability-related features, including the majorization condition. Different values of the entropic parameter $q$ are considered, as well as different values of the dimensions $N_1$ and $N_2$ of the Hilbert spaces associated with the constituting subsystems. Special emphasis is paid to the analysis of the monotonicity properties, both as a function of $q$ and as a function of $N_1$ and $N_2$, of the various entropic functionals considered.Comment: Submitted for publicatio

Entanglement and the Quantum Brachistochrone Problem

Entanglement is closely related to some fundamental features of the dynamics of composite quantum systems: quantum entanglement enhances the "speed" of evolution of certain quantum states, as measured by the time required to reach an orthogonal state. The concept of "speed" of quantum evolution constitutes an important ingredient in any attempt to determine the fundamental limits that basic physical laws impose on how fast a physical system can process or transmit information. Here we explore the relationship between entanglement and the speed of quantum evolution in the context of the quantum brachistochrone problem. Given an initial and a final state of a composite system we consider the amount of entanglement associated with the brachistochrone evolution between those states, showing that entanglement is an essential resource to achieve the alluded time-optimal quantum evolution.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures. Corrected typos in Eqs. 1 and