Open Systems & Information Dynamics

Schwinger’s algebra of selective measurements has a natural interpretation in terms of groupoids. This approach is pushed forward in this paper to show that the theory of coherent states has a natural setting in the framework of groupoids. Thus given a quantum mechanical system with associated Hilbert space determined by a representation of a groupoid, it is shown that any invariant subset of the group of invertible elements in the groupoid algebra determines a family of generalized coherent states provided that a completeness condition is satisfied. The standard coherent states for the harmonic oscillator as well as generalized coherent states for f-oscillators are exemplified in this picture.

Convex combinations of completely positive (CP) as well as CP-divisible, continuous time dynamical maps arising from collision models are investigated. While the individual maps are both CP and Markovian we find that convex combinations remain CP but not necessarily Markovian. Examples of such combinations for qubit dynamical maps arising from collisional models are worked out and the invertibility, CP-divisibility, P-divisibility as well as Markovian properties of such maps are explored.

A new condition for dynamical maps with time independent invariant state displaying Heisenberg divisibility is provided. This condition is trivially satisfied for a Markovian semigroup. However, beyond Markovian semigroups it provides a nontrivial characteristics of quantum Markovianity. Interestingly, when the invariant state is pure one recovers a condition based on Wigner–Yanase skew information.

We review the Gorini, Kossakowski, Sudarshan derivation of the generator of a completely positive norm-continuous semigroup when the constituent maps act on density matrices according to the Hadamard product rule.

We investigate the structure of quantum Markov generators that describe the reduced dynamics of a test particle interacting with a dilute Bose gas in the low density limit. These generators, called low density limit type generators (LDL), differ from the weak coupling limit type generators (WCL) studied in [4, 5] because of the presence of the T-operator that describes the change in momentum of the gas particle due to collisions with the test particle. We propose a general definition of Markov generator of stochastic limit type that includes (almost) all generators arising in the stochastic limit approach and we prove that the associated semigroups as well as their invariant states (or weights) have a very special structure which extends the explicit representation for the generic quantum Markov semigroups of weak coupling limit type, due to Accardi, Hachicha and Ouerdiane [7]. We also investigate the structure of invariant states and give conditions on the T - operator for the existence of a unique invariant state and of equilibrium states.

Here we demonstrate how the interplay between quantum coherences and a decoherence bath, such as one given by continuos quantum measurements, lead to new kinds of thermodynamic potentials and flows. We show how a mathematical extension of thermodynamics includes decoherence baths leading to a more general sense of the zeroth and first law. We also show how decoherence adds contributions to the change in entropy production in the second law. We derive a thermodynamic potential that depends only on the interplay between quantum coherences and a decoherence thermodynamic bath. This leads to novel thermodynamic effects, such as Onsager relationships that depend on quantum coherences. This provides a thermodynamics interpretation of the role of decoherence on quantum transport in very general systems.

Quantum non-Markovianity and quantum Darwinism are two phenomena linked by a common theme: the flux of quantum information between a quantum system and the quantum environment it interacts with. In this work, making use of a quantum collision model, a formalism initiated by Sudarshan and his school, we will analyse the efficiency with which the information about a single qubit gained by a quantum harmonic oscillator, acting as a meter, is transferred to a bosonic environment. We will show how, in some regimes, such quantum information flux is inefficient, leading to the simultaneous emergence of non-Markovian and non-darwinistic behaviours.