70 research outputs found
Effect of initial correlations on short-time decoherence
We study the effect of initial correlations on the short-time decoherence of
a particle linearly coupled to a bath of harmonic oscillators. We analytically
evaluate the attenuation coefficient of a Schroedinger cat state both for a
free and a harmonically bound particle, with and without initial thermal
correlations between the particle and the bath. While short-time decoherence
appears to be independent of the system in the absence of initial correlations,
we find on the contrary that, for initial thermal correlations, decoherence
becomes system dependent even for times much shorter than the characteristic
time of the system. The temperature behavior of this system dependence is
discussed.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figur
Modelling the Recoherence of Mesoscopic Superpositions in Dissipative Environments
A model is presented to describe the recently proposed experiment (J.
Raimond,
M. Brune and S. Haroche Phys. Rev. Lett {\bf 79}, 1964 (1997)) where a
mesoscopic superposition of radiation states is prepared in a high-Q cavity
which is coupled to a similar resonator. The dynamical coherence loss of such
state in the absence of dissipation is reversible and can in principle be
observed. We show how this picture is modified due to the presence of the
environmental couplings. Analytical expressions for the experimental
conditional probabilities and the linear entropy are given. We conclude that
the phenomenon can still be observed provided the ratio between the damping
constant and the inter-cavities coupling does not exceed about a few percent.
This observation is favored for superpositions of states with large overlap.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure
An quantum approach of measurement based on the Zurek's triple model
In a close form without referring the time-dependent Hamiltonian to the total
system, a consistent approach for quantum measurement is proposed based on
Zurek's triple model of quantum decoherence [W.Zurek, Phys. Rev. D 24, 1516
(1981)]. An exactly-solvable model based on the intracavity system is dealt
with in details to demonstrate the central idea in our approach: by peeling off
one collective variable of the measuring apparatus from its many degrees of
freedom, as the pointer of the apparatus, the collective variable de-couples
with the internal environment formed by the effective internal variables, but
still interacts with the measured system to form a triple entanglement among
the measured system, the pointer and the internal environment. As another
mechanism to cause decoherence, the uncertainty of relative phase and its
many-particle amplification can be summed up to an ideal entanglement or an
Shmidt decomposition with respect to the preferred basis.Comment: 22pages,3figure
Decoherence and Initial Correlations in Quantum Brownian Motion
We analyze the evolution of a quantum Brownian particle starting from an
initial state that contains correlations between this system and its
environment. Using a path integral approach, we obtain a master equation for
the reduced density matrix of the system finding relatively simple expressions
for its time dependent coefficients. We examine the evolution of delocalized
initial states (Schr\"odinger's cats) investigating the effectiveness of the
decoherence process. Analytic results are obtained for an ohmic environment
(Drude's model) at zero temperature.Comment: 15 pages, RevTex, 5 figures included. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
Decoherence in Bose-Einstein Condensates: towards Bigger and Better Schroedinger Cats
We consider a quantum superposition of Bose-Einstein condensates in two
immiscible internal states. A decoherence rate for the resulting Schroedinger
cat is calculated and shown to be a significant threat to this macroscopic
quantum superposition of BEC's. An experimental scenario is outlined where the
decoherence rate due to the thermal cloud is dramatically reduced thanks to
trap engineering and "symmetrization" of the environment which allow for the
Schroedinger cat to be an approximate pointer states.Comment: 12 pages in RevTex; improved presentation; a new comment on
decoherence-free pointer subspaces in BEC; accepted in Phys.Rev.
Decoherence: Concepts and Examples
We give a pedagogical introduction to the process of decoherence - the
irreversible emergence of classical properties through interaction with the
environment. After discussing the general concepts, we present the following
examples: Localisation of objects, quantum Zeno effect, classicality of fields
and charges in QED, and decoherence in gravity theory. We finally emphasise the
important interpretational features of decoherence.Comment: 24 pages, LATEX, 9 figures, needs macro lamuphys.sty, to appear in
the Proceedings of the 10th Born Symposiu
Environment-Induced Decoherence and the Transition From Quantum to Classical
We study dynamics of quantum open systems, paying special attention to those
aspects of their evolution which are relevant to the transition from quantum to
classical. We begin with a discussion of the conditional dynamics of simple
systems. The resulting models are straightforward but suffice to illustrate
basic physical ideas behind quantum measurements and decoherence. To discuss
decoherence and environment-induced superselection einselection in a more
general setting, we sketch perturbative as well as exact derivations of several
master equations valid for various systems. Using these equations we study
einselection employing the general strategy of the predictability sieve.
Assumptions that are usually made in the discussion of decoherence are
critically reexamined along with the ``standard lore'' to which they lead.
Restoration of quantum-classical correspondence in systems that are classically
chaotic is discussed. The dynamical second law -it is shown- can be traced to
the same phenomena that allow for the restoration of the correspondence
principle in decohering chaotic systems (where it is otherwise lost on a very
short time-scale). Quantum error correction is discussed as an example of an
anti-decoherence strategy. Implications of decoherence and einselection for the
interpretation of quantum theory are briefly pointed out.Comment: 80 pages, 7 figures included, Lectures given by both authors at the
72nd Les Houches Summer School on "Coherent Matter Waves", July-August 199
Recommended from our members
Introduction to the Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry (DC3) 2012 Studies
The Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry (DC3) project aimed to determine the impact ofdeep, midlatitude continental convective clouds on tropospheric composition and chemistry. The DC3field campaign was conducted over a broad area of the central United States during May–June 2012. Datacollected by DC3 have been extensively analyzed, with many results published in Deep Convective Cloudsand Chemistry 2012 Studies (DC3), a joint special section of JGR Atmospheres and Geophysical ResearchLetters. This paper highlights key results from the DC3 project as an introduction to the special issue.</p
Deconstructing Decoherence
The study of environmentally induced superselection and of the process of
decoherence was originally motivated by the search for the emergence of
classical behavior out of the quantum substrate, in the macroscopic limit. This
limit, and other simplifying assumptions, have allowed the derivation of
several simple results characterizing the onset of environmentally induced
superselection; but these results are increasingly often regarded as a complete
phenomenological characterization of decoherence in any regime. This is not
necessarily the case: The examples presented in this paper counteract this
impression by violating several of the simple ``rules of thumb''. This is
relevant because decoherence is now beginning to be tested experimentally, and
one may anticipate that, in at least some of the proposed applications (e.g.,
quantum computers), only the basic principle of ``monitoring by the
environment'' will survive. The phenomenology of decoherence may turn out to be
significantly different.Comment: 13 two-column pages, 3 embedded figure
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