Response Functions as Quantifiers of Non-Markovianity

Generalized Linear Response Theory for the Full Quantum Work Statistics

We consider a quantum system driven out of equilibrium via a small Hamiltonian perturbation. Building on the paradigmatic framework of linear response theory (LRT), we derive an expression for the full generating function of the dissipated work. Remarkably, we find that all information about the distribution can be encoded in a single quantity, the standard relaxation function in LRT, thus opening up new ways to use phenomenological models to study nonequilibrium fluctuations in complex quantum systems. Our results establish a number of refined quantum thermodynamic constraints on the work statistics that apply to regimes of perturbative but arbitrarily fast protocols, and do not rely on assumptions such as slow driving or weak coupling. Finally, our approach uncovers a distinctly quantum signature in the work statistics that originates from underlying zero-point energy fluctuations. This causes an increased dispersion of the probability distribution at short driving times, a feature that can be probed in efforts to witness nonclassical effects in quantum thermodynamics.

Quantum Thermodynamic Uncertainty Relations, Generalized Current Fluctuations and Nonequilibrium Fluctuation–Dissipation Inequalities

Thermodynamic uncertainty relations (TURs) represent one of the few broad-based and fundamental relations in our toolbox for tackling the thermodynamics of nonequilibrium systems. One form of TUR quantifies the minimal energetic cost of achieving a certain precision in determining a nonequilibrium current. In this initial stage of our research program, our goal is to provide the quantum theoretical basis of TURs using microphysics models of linear open quantum systems where it is possible to obtain exact solutions. In paper [Dong et al., Entropy 2022, 24, 870], we show how TURs are rooted in the quantum uncertainty principles and the fluctuation–dissipation inequalities (FDI) under fully nonequilibrium conditions. In this paper, we shift our attention from the quantum basis to the thermal manifests. Using a microscopic model for the bath’s spectral density in quantum Brownian motion studies, we formulate a “thermal” FDI in the quantum nonequilibrium dynamics which is valid at high temperatures. This brings the quantum TURs we derive here to the classical domain and can thus be compared with some popular forms of TURs. In the thermal-energy-dominated regimes, our FDIs provide better estimates on the uncertainty of thermodynamic quantities. Our treatment includes full back-action from the environment onto the system. As a concrete example of the generalized current, we examine the energy flux or power entering the Brownian particle and find an exact expression of the corresponding current–current correlations. In so doing, we show that the statistical properties of the bath and the causality of the system+bath interaction both enter into the TURs obeyed by the thermodynamic quantities.

Universal non-Markovianity detection in hybrid open quantum systems

A universal characterization of non-Markovianity for any open hybrid quantum systems is presented. This formulation is based on the negativity volume of the generalized Wigner function, which serves as an indicator of the quantum correlations in any composite quantum systems. It is shown, that the proposed measure can be utilized for any single or multi-partite quantum system, containing any discrete or continuous variables. To demonstrate its power in revealing non-Markovianity in such quantum systems, we additionally consider a few illustrative examples.

Temporal self-similarity of quantum dynamical maps as a concept of memorylessness

The problem of defining quantum non-Markovianity has proven elusive, with various in-equivalent criteria put forth to address it. The concept of CP-indivisibility and the hierarchy of stronger divisibility criteria going up to P-indivisibility, capture a fundamental aspect of memory in quantum non-Markovianity. In practice, however, there can be a memory-like influence associated with divisible channels in the form of weakening, if not reversing, the effects of decoherence. Arguably, such a facet of memory relates to CP-indivisibility as quantum discord relates to entanglement. We concretize this weaker notion of non-Markovianity by identifying it with deviation from "temporal self-similarity", the property of a system dynamics whereby the propagator between two intermediate states is independent of the initial time [Formula: see text]. We illustrate this idea through examples, and propose a geometric quantification of temporal self-similarity, and show how our approach complements the divisibility-based criterion of quantum non-Markovianity.

Quantum duets working as autonomous thermal motors

We study the dynamic properties of a thermal autonomous machine made up of two quantum Brownian particles, each of which is in contact with an environment at different temperature and moves on a periodic sinusoidal track. When such tracks are shifted, the center of mass of the system exhibits a nonvanishing velocity, for which we provide an exact expression in the limit of small track undulations. We discuss the role of the broken spatial symmetry in the emergence of directed motion in thermal machines. We then consider the case in which external deterministic forces are applied to the system, and we characterize its steady-state velocity. If the applied external force opposes the system motion, work can be extracted from such a steady-state thermal machine, without any external cyclic protocol. When the two particles are not interacting, our results reduce to those of Fisher and Zwerger [Phys. Rev. B 32, 6190 (1985)PRBMDO0163-182910.1103/PhysRevB.32.6190] and Aslangul, Pottier, and Saint-James [J. Phys. France 48, 1093 (1987)JOPQAG0302-073810.1051/jphys:019870048070109300] for a single particle moving in a periodic tilted potential. We finally use our results for the motor velocity to check the validity of the quantum molecular dynamics algorithm in the nonlinear, nonequilibrium regime.

Non-Markovianity and negative entropy production rates

Entropy production plays a fundamental role in nonequilibrium thermodynamics to quantify the irreversibility of open systems. Its positivity can be ensured for a wide class of setups, but the entropy production rate can become negative sometimes. This is often taken as an indicator of non-Markovianity. We make this link precise by showing under which conditions a negative entropy production rate implies non-Markovianity and when it does not. For a system coupled to a single heat bath, this can be established within a unified language for two setups: (i) the dynamics resulting from a coarse-grained description of a Markovian master equation and (ii) the classical Hamiltonian dynamics of a system coupled to a bath. The quantum version of the latter result is shown not to hold despite the fact that the integrated thermodynamic description is formally equivalent to the classical case. The instantaneous fixed point of a non-Markovian dynamics plays an important role in our study. Our key contribution is to provide a consistent theoretical framework to study the finite-time thermodynamics of a large class of dynamics with a precise link to its non-Markovianity.