Efficient and Deterministic Propagation of Mixed Quantum-Classical Liouville Dynamics

General framework for quantifying dissipation pathways in open quantum systems. I. Theoretical formulation

We present a general and practical theoretical framework to investigate how energy is dissipated in open quantum system dynamics. This is performed by quantifying the contributions of individual bath components to the overall dissipation of the system. The framework is based on the Nakajima-Zwanzig projection operator technique, which allows us to express the rate of energy dissipation into a specific bath degree of freedom by using traces of operator products. The approach captures system-bath interactions to all orders, but is based on second-order perturbation theory on the off-diagonal subsystem's couplings and a Markovian description of the bath. The usefulness of our theory is demonstrated by applying it to various models of open quantum systems involving harmonic oscillators or spin baths and connecting the outcomes to existing results such as our previously reported formula derived for locally coupled harmonic baths [Kim and Franco, J. Chem. Phys. 154, 084109 (2021)]. We also prove that the dissipation calculated by our theory rigorously satisfies thermodynamic principles such as energy conservation and detailed balance. Overall, the strategy can be used to develop the theory and simulation of dissipation pathways to interpret and engineer the dynamics of open quantum systems.

Population and Energy Transfer Dynamics in an Open Excitonic Quantum Battery

In a previous study, we proposed an open quantum network model of a quantum battery (QB) that possesses dark states owing to its structural exchange symmetries. While in a dark state, the QB is capable of storing an exciton without any environment-induced population losses. However, when the structural exchange symmetry is broken, the QB begins to discharge the exciton towards its exit site. In this article, we start by demonstrating that this QB is not only loss-free with respect to exciton population during the storage phase, but also with respect to the QB energy. We then explore the exciton population and energy transfer dynamics of the QB during the discharge phase over a wide range of site energies, bath temperatures, and bath reorganization energies. Our results shed light on how to optimize the QB's population and energy transfer dynamics for different purposes.

Surface hopping modeling of charge and energy transfer in active environments

An active environment is any atomic or molecular system changing a chromophore's nonadiabatic dynamics compared to the isolated molecule. The action of the environment on the chromophore occurs by changing the potential energy landscape and triggering new energy and charge flows unavailable in the vacuum. Surface hopping is a mixed quantum-classical approach whose extreme flexibility has made it the primary platform for implementing novel methodologies to investigate the nonadiabatic dynamics of a chromophore in active environments. This Perspective paper surveys the latest developments in the field, focusing on charge and energy transfer processes.

DECIDE: A Deterministic Mixed Quantum-Classical Dynamics Approach

Mixed quantum-classical dynamics provides an efficient way of simulating the dynamics of quantum subsystems coupled to many-body environments. Many processes, including proton-transfer reactions, electron-transfer reactions, and vibrational energy transport, for example, take place in such open systems. The most accurate algorithms for performing mixed quantum-classical simulations require very large ensembles of trajectories to obtain converged expectation values, which is computationally prohibitive for quantum subsystems containing even a few degrees of freedom. The recently developed “Deterministic evolution of coordinates with initial decoupled equations” (DECIDE) method has demonstrated high accuracy and low computational cost for a host of model systems; however, these applications relied on representing the equations of motion in subsystem and adiabatic energy bases. While these representations are convenient for certain systems, the position representation is convenient for many other systems, including systems undergoing proton- and electron-transfer reactions. Thus, in this review, we provide a step-by-step derivation of the DECIDE approach and demonstrate how to cast the DECIDE equations in a quantum harmonic oscillator position basis for a simple one-dimensional (1D) hydrogen bond model. After integrating the DECIDE equations of motion on this basis, we show that the total energy of the system is conserved for this model and calculate various quantities of interest. Limitations of casting the equations in an incomplete basis are also discussed.

Stark absorption and Stark fluorescence spectroscopies: Theory and simulations

Stark spectroscopy experiments are widely used to study the properties of molecular systems, particularly those containing charge-transfer (CT) states. However, due to the small transition dipole moments and large static dipole moments of the CT states, the standard interpretation of the Stark absorption and Stark fluorescence spectra in terms of the Liptay model may be inadequate. In this work, we provide a theoretical framework for calculations of Stark absorption and Stark fluorescence spectra and propose new methods of simulations that are based on the quantum-classical theory. In particular, we use the forward-backward trajectory solution and a variant of the Poisson bracket mapping equation, which have been recently adapted for the calculation of conventional (field-free) absorption and fluorescence spectra. For comparison, we also apply the recently proposed complex time-dependent Redfield theory, while exact results are obtained using the hierarchical equations of motion approach. We show that the quantum-classical methods produce accurate results for a wide range of systems, including those containing CT states. The CT states contribute significantly to the Stark spectra, and the standard Liptay formalism is shown to be inapplicable for the analysis of spectroscopic data in those cases. We demonstrate that states with large static dipole moments may cause a pronounced change in the total fluorescence yield of the system in the presence of an external electric field. This effect is correctly captured by the quantum-classical methods, which should therefore prove useful for further studies of Stark spectra of real molecular systems. As an example, we calculate the Stark spectra for the Fenna-Matthews-Olson complex of green sulfur bacteria.

Computational elucidations on the role of vibrations in energy transfer processes of photosynthetic complexes

Coupling between pigment excitations and nuclear movements in photosynthetic complexes is known to modulate the excitation energy transfer (EET) efficiencies. Toward providing microscopic information, researchers often apply simulation techniques and investigate how vibrations are involved in EET processes. Here, reports on such roles of nuclear movements are discussed from a theory perspective. While vibrations naturally present random thermal fluctuations that can affect energy transferring characteristics, they can also be intertwined with exciton structures and create more specific non-adiabatic energy transfer pathways. For reliable simulations, a bath model that accurately mimics a given molecular system is required. Methods for obtaining such a model in combination with quantum chemical electronic structure calculations and molecular dynamics trajectory simulations are discussed. Various quantum dynamics simulation tools that can handle pigment-to-pigment energy transfers together with their vibrational characters are also touched on. Behaviors of molecular vibrations often deviate from ideality, especially when all-atom details are included, which practically forces us to treat them classically. We conclude this perspective by considering some recent reports that suggest that classical descriptions of bath effects with all-atom details may still produce valuable information for analyzing sophisticated contributions by vibrations to EET processes.

Quantum bath effects on nonequilibrium heat transport in model molecular junctions

Quantum-classical dynamics simulations enable the study of nonequilibrium heat transport in realistic models of molecules coupled to thermal baths. In these simulations, the initial conditions of the bath degrees of freedom are typically sampled from classical distributions. Herein, we investigate the effects of sampling the initial conditions of the thermal baths from quantum and classical distributions on the steady-state heat current in the nonequilibrium spin-boson model-a prototypical model of a single-molecule junction-in different parameter regimes. For a broad range of parameter regimes considered, we find that the steady-state heat currents are ∼1.3-4.5 times larger with the classical bath sampling than with the quantum bath sampling. Using both types of sampling, the steady-state heat currents exhibit turnovers as a function of the bath reorganization energy, with sharper turnovers in the classical case than in the quantum case and different temperature dependencies of the turnover maxima. As the temperature gap between the hot and cold baths increases, we observe an increasing difference in the steady-state heat currents obtained with the classical and quantum bath sampling. In general, as the bath temperatures are increased, the differences between the results of the classical and quantum bath sampling decrease but remain non-negligible at the high bath temperatures. The differences are attributed to the more pronounced temperature dependence of the classical distribution compared to the quantum one. Moreover, we find that the steady-state fluctuation theorem only holds for this model in the Markovian regime when quantum bath sampling is used. Altogether, our results highlight the importance of quantum bath sampling in quantum-classical dynamics simulations of quantum heat transport.

Theory of dissipation pathways in open quantum systems

We introduce a simple and effective method to decompose the energy dissipation in the dynamics of open quantum systems into contributions due to individual bath components. The method is based on a vibronic extension of the Förster resonance energy transfer theory that enables quantifying the energy dissipated by specific bath degrees of freedom. Its accuracy is determined by benchmarking against mixed quantum-classical simulations that reveal that the method provides a semi-quantitative frequency-dependent decomposition of the overall dissipation. The utility of the method is illustrated by using a model donor-acceptor pair interacting to a thermal harmonic bath with different coupling strengths. The method can be used to identify the key features of a bath that leads to energy dissipation as required to develop a deep understanding of the dynamics of open quantum systems and to engineer environments with desired dissipative features.

Recent progress in approximate quantum dynamics methods for the study of proton-coupled electron transfer reactions

Proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions are ubiquitous natural processes at the heart of energy conversion reactions in photosynthesis and respiration, DNA repair, and diverse enzymatic reactions. Theoretical formulation and computational method developments have eyed modeling of thermal and photoinduced PCET for the last three decades. The accumulation of these studies, collected in dozens of reviews, accounts, and perspectives, has firmly established the influence of quantum effects, including non-adiabatic electronic transitions, vibrational relaxation, zero-point energy, and proton tunneling, on the rate and mechanism of PCET reactions. Here, we focus on some recently-developed methods, spanning the last eight years, that can quantitatively capture these effects in the PCET context and provide efficient means for their qualitative description in complex systems. The theoretical background of each method and their accuracy with respect to exact results are discussed and the results of relevant PCET simulations based on each method are presented.

Two-oscillator mapping modification of the Poisson bracket mapping equation formulation of the quantum-classical Liouville equation

Mapping basis solutions provide efficient ways for simulating mixed quantum-classical (MQC) dynamics in complex systems by matching multiple quantum states of interest to some fictitious physical states. Recently, various MQC methods were devised such that two harmonic oscillators are employed to represent each electronic state, showing improvements over one-oscillator-based methods. Here, we introduce and analyze newly modified mapping approximations of the quantum-classical Liouville equation (QCLE) using two oscillators for each electronic state. We design two separate mapping relations that we can adopt toward simulating dynamics and computing expectation values. Through the process, two MQC methods can be constructed, one of which actually reproduces the population dynamics of the forward and backward trajectory solution of QCLE. By applying the methods to spin-boson systems with a range of parameters, we find out that the choice of mapping relations greatly affects the simulation results. We also show that further improvement is possible through using modified identity operator formulations. Our findings may be helpful in constructing improved MQC methods in the future.

Toward monitoring the dissipative vibrational energy flows in open quantum systems by mixed quantum-classical simulations

In open quantum system dynamics, rich information about the major energy relaxation channels and corresponding relaxation rates can be elucidated by monitoring the vibrational energy flow among individual bath modes. However, such calculations often become tremendously difficult as the complexity of the subsystem-bath coupling increases. In this paper, we attempt to make this task feasible by using a mixed quantum-classical method, the Poisson-bracket mapping equation with non-Hamiltonian modification (PBME-nH) [H. W. Kim and Y. M. Rhee, J. Chem. Phys. 140, 184106 (2014)]. For a quantum subsystem bilinearly coupled to harmonic bath modes, we derive an expression for the mode energy in terms of the classical positions and momenta of the nuclei, while keeping consistency with the energy of the quantum subsystem. The accuracy of the resulting expression is then benchmarked against a numerically exact method by using relatively simple models. Although our expression predicts a qualitatively correct dissipation rate for a range of situations, cases involving a strong vibronic resonance are quite challenging. This is attributed to the inherent lack of quantum back reaction in PBME-nH, which becomes significant when the subsystem strongly interacts with a small number of bath modes. A rigorous treatment of such an effect will be crucial for developing quantitative simulation methods that can handle generic subsystem-bath coupling.

Nonequilibrium heat transport in a molecular junction: A mixed quantum-classical approach

In a recent study [J. Liu et al., J. Chem. Phys. 149, 224104 (2018)], we developed a general mixed quantum-classical framework for studying heat transport through molecular junctions, in which the junction molecule is treated quantum mechanically and the thermal reservoirs to which the molecule is coupled are treated classically. This framework yields expressions for the transferred heat and steady-state heat current, which could be calculated using a variety of mixed quantum-classical dynamics methods. In this work, we use the recently developed "Deterministic Evolution of Coordinates with Initial Decoupled Equations" (DECIDE) method for calculating the steady-state heat current in the nonequilibrium spin-boson model in a variety of parameter regimes. Our results are compared and contrasted with those obtained using the numerically exact multilayer multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree approach, and using approximate methods, including mean field theory, Redfield theory, and adiabatic mixed quantum-classical dynamics. Despite some quantitative differences, the DECIDE method performs quite well, is capable of capturing the expected trends in the steady-state heat current, and, overall, outperforms the approximate methods. These results hold promise for DECIDE simulations of nonequilibrium heat transport in realistic models of nanoscale systems.

Heat transfer statistics in mixed quantum-classical systems

The modelling of quantum heat transfer processes at the nanoscale is crucial for the development of energy harvesting and molecular electronic devices. Herein, we adopt a mixed quantum-classical description of a device, in which the open subsystem of interest is treated quantum mechanically and the surrounding heat baths are treated in a classical-like fashion. By introducing such a mixed quantum-classical description of the composite system, one is able to study the heat transfer between the subsystem and bath from a closed system point of view, thereby avoiding simplifying assumptions related to the bath time scale and subsystem-bath coupling strength. In particular, we adopt the full counting statistics approach to derive a general expression for the moment generating function of heat in systems whose dynamics are described by the quantum-classical Liouville equation (QCLE). From this expression, one can deduce expressions for the dynamics of the average heat and heat current, which may be evaluated using numerical simulations. Due to the approximate nature of the QCLE, we also find that the steady state fluctuation symmetry holds up to order ℏ for systems whose subsystem-bath couplings and baths go beyond bilinear and harmonic, respectively. To demonstrate the approach, we consider the nonequilibrium spin boson model and simulate its time-dependent average heat and heat current under various conditions.

Quasi-Lie Brackets and the Breaking of Time-Translation Symmetry for Quantum Systems Embedded in Classical Baths

Many open quantum systems encountered in both natural and synthetic situations are embedded in classical-like baths. Often, the bath degrees of freedom may be represented in terms of canonically conjugate coordinates, but in some cases they may require a non-canonical or non-Hamiltonian representation. Herein, we review an approach to the dynamics and statistical mechanics of quantum subsystems embedded in either non-canonical or non-Hamiltonian classical-like baths which is based on operator-valued quasi-probability functions. These functions typically evolve through the action of quasi-Lie brackets and their associated Quantum-Classical Liouville Equations, or through quasi-Lie brackets augmented by dissipative terms. Quasi-Lie brackets possess the unique feature that, while conserving the energy (which the Noether theorem links to time-translation symmetry), they violate the time-translation symmetry of their algebra. This fact can be heuristically understood in terms of the dynamics of the open quantum subsystem. We then describe an example in which a quantum subsystem is embedded in a bath of classical spins, which are described by non-canonical coordinates. In this case, it has been shown that an off-diagonal open-bath geometric phase enters into the propagation of the quantum-classical dynamics. Next, we discuss how non-Hamiltonian dynamics may be employed to generate the constant-temperature evolution of phase space degrees of freedom coupled to the quantum subsystem. Constant-temperature dynamics may be generated by either a classical Langevin stochastic process or a Nosé–Hoover deterministic thermostat. These two approaches are not equivalent but have different advantages and drawbacks. In all cases, the calculation of the operator-valued quasi-probability function allows one to compute time-dependent statistical averages of observables. This may be accomplished in practice using a hybrid Molecular Dynamics/Monte Carlo algorithms, which we outline herein.