0000000000042933
AUTHOR
G. M. Palma
Robust non-Markovianity in ultracold gases
We study the effect of thermal fluctuations on a probe qubit interacting with a Bose-Einstein condensed (BEC) reservoir. The zero-temperature case was studied in [Haikka P et al 2011 Phys. Rev. A 84 031602], where we proposed a method to probe the effects of dimensionality and scattering length of a BEC based on its behavior as an environment. Here we show that the sensitivity of the probe qubit is remarkably robust against thermal noise. We give an intuitive explanation for the thermal resilience, showing that it is due to the unique choice of the probe qubit architecture of our model.
Physical model for the generation of ideal resources in multipartite quantum networking
We propose a physical model for generating multipartite entangled states of spin-$s$ particles that have important applications in distributed quantum information processing. Our protocol is based on a process where mobile spins induce the interaction among remote scattering centers. As such, a major advantage lies on the management of stationary and well separated spins. Among the generable states, there is a class of $N$-qubit singlets allowing for optimal quantum telecloning in a scalable and controllable way. We also show how to prepare Aharonov, W and Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger states.
Quantum synchronization as a local signature of super- and subradiance
We study the relationship between the collective phenomena of super- and subradiance and spontaneous synchronization of quantum systems. To this aim we revisit the case of two detuned qubits interacting through a pure dissipative bosonic environment, which contains the minimal ingredients for our analysis. By using the Liouville formalism, we are able to find analytically the ultimate connection between these phenomena. We find that dynamical synchronization is due to the presence of longstanding coherence between the ground state of the system and the subradiant state. We finally show that, under pure dissipation, the emergence of spontaneous synchronization and of subradiant emission occu…
Collective decoherence of cold atoms coupled to a Bose-Einstein condensate
We examine the time evolution of cold atoms (impurities) interacting with an environment consisting of a degenerate bosonic quantum gas. The impurity atoms differ from the environment atoms, being of a different species. This allows one to superimpose two independent trapping potentials, each being effective only on one atomic kind, while transparent to the other. When the environment is homogeneous and the impurities are confined in a potential consisting of a set of double wells, the system can be described in terms of an effective spin-boson model, where the occupation of the left or right well of each site represents the two (pseudo)-spin states. The irreversible dynamics of such system…
Resilience of singlet-state extraction against non-optimal resonance conditions
We have recently presented a protocol for extracting the singlet state of two non-interacting high-dimensional spins through post-selection of the internal state of interaction mediators sent in succession [F. Ciccarello et al., arXiv:0710.3855v1]. The scheme requires each mediator's wavevector to obey appropriate resonance conditions. Here we show the robustness of the scheme in the realistic case where such conditions are not sharply fulfilled.
Work fluctuations in bosonic Josephson junctions
We calculate the first two moments and full probability distribution of the work performed on a system of bosonic particles in a two-mode Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian when the self-interaction term is varied instantaneously or with a finite-time ramp. In the instantaneous case, we show how the irreversible work scales differently depending on whether the system is driven to the Josephson or Fock regime of the bosonic Josephson junction. In the finite-time case, we use optimal control techniques to substantially decrease the irreversible work to negligible values. Our analysis can be implemented in present-day experiments with ultracold atoms and we show how to relate the work statistics to that…
When Casimir meets Kibble–Zurek
Verification of the dynamical Casimir effect (DCE) in optical systems is still elusive due to the very demanding requirements for its experimental implementation. This typically requires very fast changes in the boundary conditions of the problem. We show that an ensemble of two-level atoms collectively coupled to the electromagnetic field of a cavity, driven at low frequencies and close to a quantum phase transition, stimulates the production of photons from the vacuum. This paves the way for an effective simulation of the DCE through a mechanism that has recently found experimental demonstration. The spectral properties of the emitted radiation reflect the critical nature of the system an…
Superadiabatic dynamics in open quantum systems
We extend the concept of superadiabatic dynamics, or transitionless quantum driving, to quantum open systems whose evolution is governed by a master equation in the Lindblad form. We provide the general framework needed to determine the control strategy required to achieve superadiabaticity. We apply our formalism to two examples consisting of a two-level system coupled to environments with time-dependent bath operators.
Entanglement generation and protection by detuning modulation
We introduce a protocol for steady-state entanglement generation and protection based on detuning modulation in the dissipative interaction between a two-qubit system and a bosonic mode. The protocol is a global-addressing scheme which only requires control over the system as a whole. We describe a postselection procedure to project the register state onto a subspace of maximally entangled states. We also outline how our proposal can be implemented in a circuit-quantum electrodynamics setup.
Potential and limitations of quantum extreme learning machines
Quantum reservoir computers (QRC) and quantum extreme learning machines (QELM) aim to efficiently post-process the outcome of fixed -- generally uncalibrated -- quantum devices to solve tasks such as the estimation of the properties of quantum states. The characterisation of their potential and limitations, which is currently lacking, will enable the full deployment of such approaches to problems of system identification, device performance optimization, and state or process reconstruction. We present a framework to model QRCs and QELMs, showing that they can be concisely described via single effective measurements, and provide an explicit characterisation of the information exactly retriev…
Quantifying, characterizing, and controlling information flow in ultracold atomic gases
We study quantum information flow in a model comprising of an impurity qubit immersed in a Bose-Einstein condensed reservoir. We demonstrate how information flux between the qubit and the condensate can be manipulated by engineering the ultracold reservoir within experimentally realistic limits. We place a particular emphasis on non-Markovian dynamics, characterized by a reversed flow of information from the background gas to the qubit and identify a controllable crossover between Markovian and non-Markovian dynamics in the parameter space of the model.
A scheme for entanglement extraction from a solid
Some thermodynamical properties of solids, such as heat capacity and magnetic susceptibility, have recently been shown to be linked to the amount of entanglement in a solid. However this entanglement may appear a mere mathematical artifact of the typical symmetrization procedure of many-body wave function in solid state physics. Here we show that this entanglement is physical demonstrating the principles of its extraction from a typical solid state system by scattering two particles off the system. Moreover we show how to simulate this process using present-day optical lattices technology. This demonstrates not only that entanglement exists in solids but also that it can be used for quantum…
Master equation for cascade quantum channels: a collisional approach
It has been recently shown that collisional models can be used to derive a general form for the master equations which describe the reduced time evolution of a composite multipartite quantum system, whose components "propagate" in an environmental medium which induces correlations among them via a cascade mechanism. Here we analyze the fundamental assumptions of this approach showing how some of them can be lifted when passing into a proper interaction picture representation.
Photon Production from the Vacuum Close to the Superradiant Transition: Linking the Dynamical Casimir Effect to the Kibble-Zurek Mechanism
The dynamical Casimir effect (DCE) predicts the generation of photons from the vacuum due to the parametric amplification of the quantum fluctuations of an electromagnetic field. The verification of such an effect is still elusive in optical systems due to the very demanding requirements of its experimental implementation. We show that an ensemble of two-level atoms collectively coupled to the electromagnetic field of a cavity, driven at low frequencies and close to a quantum phase transition, stimulates the production of photons from the vacuum. This paves the way to an effective simulation of the DCE through a mechanism that has recently found experimental demonstration. The spectral prop…
A deeper insight into quantum state transfer from an information flux viewpoint
We use the recently introduced concept of information flux in a many-body register in order to give an alternative viewpoint on quantum state transfer in linear chains of many spins.
Geometric phase kickback in a mesoscopic qubit-oscillator system
We illustrate a reverse Von Neumann measurement scheme in which a geometric phase induced on a quantum harmonic oscillator is measured using a microscopic qubit as a probe. We show how such a phase, generated by a cyclic evolution in the phase space of the harmonic oscillator, can be kicked back on the qubit, which plays the role of a quantum interferometer. We also extend our study to finite-temperature dissipative Markovian dynamics and discuss potential implementations in micro and nano-mechanical devices coupled to an effective two-level system.
Landauer’s Principle in Multipartite Open Quantum System Dynamics
We investigate the link between information and thermodynamics embodied by Landauer's principle in the open dynamics of a multipartite quantum system. Such irreversible dynamics is described in terms of a collisional model with a finite temperature reservoir. We demonstrate that Landauer's principle holds, for such a configuration, in a form that involves the flow of heat dissipated into the environment and the rate of change of the entropy of the system. Quite remarkably, such a principle for {\it heat and entropy power} can be explicitly linked to the rate of creation of correlations among the elements of the multipartite system and, in turn, the non-Markovian nature of their reduced evol…
Remnants of Anderson localization in prethermalization induced by white noise
We study the non-equilibrium evolution of a one-dimensional quantum Ising chain with spatially disordered, time-dependent, transverse fields characterised by white noise correlation dynamics. We establish pre-thermalization in this model, showing that the quench dynamics of the on-site transverse magnetisation first approaches a metastable state unaffected by noise fluctuations, and then relaxes exponentially fast towards an infinite temperature state as a result of the noise. We also consider energy transport in the model, starting from an inhomogeneous state with two domain walls which separate regions characterised by spins with opposite transverse magnetization. We observe at intermedia…
Teleportation-induced correlated quantum channels.
Quantum teleportation of a n-qubit state performed using as entangled resource a general bipartite state of 2n qubits instead of n Bell states is equivalent to a correlated Pauli channel. This provides a new characterization of such channels in terms of many-body correlation functions of the teleporting media. Our model is then generalized to the Continuous Variable case. We show that this new representation provides a relatively simple method for determining whether a correlated quantum channel is able to reliably convey quantum messages by studying the entanglement properties of the teleportation mediating system.
Accumulation of entanglement in a continuous variable memory
We study the accumulation of entanglement in a memory device built out of two continuous variable (CV) systems. We address the case of a qubit mediating an indirect joint interaction between the CV systems. We show that, in striking contrast with respect to registers built out of bidimensional Hilbert spaces, entanglement superior to a single ebit can be efficiently accumulated in the memory, even though no entangled resource is used. We study the protocol in an immediately implementable setup, assessing the effects of the main imperfections.
Hybrid optomechanics for Quantum Technologies
We review the physics of hybrid optomechanical systems consisting of a mechanical oscillator interacting with both a radiation mode and an additional matter-like system. We concentrate on the cases embodied by either a single or a multi-atom system (a Bose-Einstein condensate, in particular) and discuss a wide range of physical effects, from passive mechanical cooling to the set-up of multipartite entanglement, from optomechanical non-locality to the achievement of non-classical states of a single mechanical mode. The reviewed material showcases the viability of hybridised cavity optomechanical systems as basic building blocks for quantum communication networks and quantum state-engineering…
Geometric-phase backaction in a mesoscopic qubit-oscillator system
We illustrate a reverse Von Neumann measurement scheme in which a geometric phase induced on a quantum harmonic oscillator is measured using a microscopic qubit as a probe. We show how such a phase, generated by a cyclic evolution in the phase space of the harmonic oscillator, can be kicked back on the qubit, which plays the role of a quantum interferometer. We also extend our study to finite-temperature dissipative Markovian dynamics and discuss potential implementations in micro- and nanomechanical devices coupled to an effective two-level system. © 2012 American Physical Society.
Tunable Polarons in Bose-Einstein Condensates
A toolbox for the quantum simulation of polarons in ultracold atoms is presented. Motivated by the impressive experimental advances in the area of ultracold atomic mixtures, we theoretically study the problem of ultracold atomic impurities immersed in a Bose-Einstein condensate mixture (BEC). The coupling between impurity and BEC gives rise to the formation of polarons whose mutual interaction can be effectively tuned using an external laser driving a quasi-resonant Raman transition between the BEC components. Our scheme allows one to change the effective interactions between polarons in different sites from attractive to zero. This is achieved by simply changing the intensity and the frequ…
Transitionless quantum driving in open quantum systems
Abstract We extend the concept of superadiabatic dynamics, or transitionless quantum driving, to quantum open systems whose evolution is governed by a master equation in the Lindblad form. We provide the general framework needed to determine the control strategy required to achieve superadiabaticity. We apply our formalism to two examples consisting of a two-level system coupled to environments with time-dependent bath operators.
Transfer of arbitrary two-qubit states via a spin chain
We investigate the fidelity of the quantum state transfer (QST) of two qubits by means of an arbitrary spin-1/2 network, on a lattice of any dimensionality. Under the assumptions that the network Hamiltonian preserves the magnetization and that a fully polarized initial state is taken for the lattice, we obtain a general formula for the average fidelity of the two qubits QST, linking it to the one- and two-particle transfer amplitudes of the spin-excitations among the sites of the lattice. We then apply this formalism to a 1D spin chain with XX-Heisenberg type nearest-neighbour interactions adopting a protocol that is a generalization of the single qubit one proposed in Ref. [Phys. Rev. A 8…
Structural change in multipartite entanglement sharing: a random matrix approach
We study the typical entanglement properties of a system comprising two independent qubit environments interacting via a shuttling ancilla. The initial preparation of the environments is modeled using random-matrix techniques. The entanglement measure used in our study is then averaged over many histories of randomly prepared environmental states. Under a Heisenberg interaction model, the average entanglement between the ancilla and one of the environments remains constant, regardless of the preparation of the latter and the details of the interaction. We also show that, upon suitable kinematic and dynamical changes in the ancilla-environment subsystems, the entanglement-sharing structure u…
Entanglement production by quantum error correction in the presence of correlated environment
We analyze the effect of a quantum error correcting code on the entanglement of encoded logical qubits in the presence of a dephasing interaction with a correlated environment. Such correlated reservoir introduces entanglement between physical qubits. We show that for short times the quantum error correction interprets such entanglement as errors and suppresses it. However for longer time, although quantum error correction is no longer able to correct errors, it enhances the rate of entanglement production due to the interaction with the environment.
Cold-Atom-Induced Control of an Optomechanical Device
We consider a cavity with a vibrating end mirror and coupled to a Bose-Einstein condensate. The cavity field mediates the interplay between mirror and collective oscillations of the atomic density. We study the implications of this dynamics and the possibility of an indirect diagnostic. Our predictions can be observed in a realistic setup that is central to the current quest for mesoscopic quantumness.
Non-classicality of optomechanical devices in experimentally realistic operating regimes
Enforcing a non-classical behavior in mesoscopic systems is important for the study of the boundaries between quantum and classical world. Recent experiments have shown that optomechanical devices are promising candidates to pursue such investigations. Here we consider two different setups where the indirect coupling between a three-level atom and the movable mirrors of a cavity is achieved. The resulting dynamics is able to conditionally prepare a non-classical state of the mirrors by means of projective measurements operated over a pure state of the atomic system. The non-classical features are persistent against incoherent thermal preparation of the mechanical systems and their dissipati…
Collision-model-based approach to non-Markovian quantum dynamics
We present a theoretical framework to tackle quantum non-Markovian dynamics based on a microscopic collision model (CM), where the bath consists of a large collection of initially uncorrelated ancillas. Unlike standard memoryless CMs, we endow the bath with memory by introducing inter-ancillary collisions between next system-ancilla interactions. Our model interpolates between a fully Markovian dynamics and the continuous interaction of the system with a single ancilla, i.e., a strongly non-Markovian process. We show that in the continuos limit one can derive a general master equation, which while keeping such features is guaranteed to describe an unconditionally completely positive and tra…
Information-flux approach to multiple-spin dynamics
We introduce and formalize the concept of information flux in a many-body register as the influence that the dynamics of a specific element receive from any other element of the register. By quantifying the information flux in a protocol, we can design the most appropriate initial state of the system and, noticeably, the distribution of coupling strengths among the parts of the register itself. The intuitive nature of this tool and its flexibility, which allow for easily manageable numerical approaches when analytic expressions are not straightforward, are greatly useful in interacting many-body systems such as quantum spin chains. We illustrate the use of this concept in quantum cloning an…
Cavity-aided quantum parameter estimation in a bosonic double-well Josephson junction
We describe an apparatus designed to make non-demolition measurements on a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) trapped in a double-well optical cavity. This apparatus contains, as well as the bosonic gas and the trap, an optical cavity. We show how the interaction between the light and the atoms, under appropriate conditions, can allow for a weakly disturbing yet highly precise measurement of the population imbalance between the two wells and its variance. We show that the setting is well suited for the implementation of quantum-limited estimation strategies for the inference of the key parameters defining the evolution of the atomic system and based on measurements performed on the cavity field…
Probing mechanical quantum coherence with an ultracold-atom meter
We propose a scheme to probe quantum coherence in the state of a nano-cantilever based on its magnetic coupling (mediated by a magnetic tip) with a spinor Bose Einstein condensate (BEC). By mapping the BEC into a rotor, its coupling with the cantilever results in a gyroscopic motion whose properties depend on the state of the cantilever: the dynamics of one of the components of the rotor angular momentum turns out to be strictly related to the presence of quantum coherence in the state of the cantilever. We also suggest a detection scheme relying on Faraday rotation, which produces only a very small back-action on the BEC and it is thus suitable for a continuous detection of the cantilever'…
Tensor-product states and local indistinguishability: an optical linear implementation
In this paper we investigate the properties of distinguishability of an orthogonal set of product states of two three level particle system by a simple class of joint measures. Here we confine ourselves to a system of analysis built up of linear elements, such as beam splitters and phase shifters, delay lines, electronically switched linear devices and auxiliary photons. We present here the impossibility of realization of a perfect never falling analyzer with this tools.
Entanglement control in hybrid optomechanical systems
We demonstrate the control of entanglement in a hybrid optomechanical system comprising an optical cavity with a mechanical end-mirror and an intracavity Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). Pulsed laser light (tuned within realistic experimental conditions) is shown to induce an almost sixfold increase of the atom-mirror entanglement and to be responsible for interesting dynamics between such mesoscopic systems. In order to assess the advantages offered by the proposed control technique, we compare the time-dependent dynamics of the system under constant pumping with the evolution due to the modulated laser light.
Master equations for correlated quantum channels
We derive the general form of a master equation describing the interaction of an arbitrary multipartite quantum system, consisting of a set of subsystems, with an environment, consisting of a large number of sub-envirobments. Each subsystem "collides" with the same sequence of sub-environments which, in between the collisions, evolve according to a map that mimics relaxations effects. No assumption is made on the specific nature of neither the system nor the environment. In the weak coupling regime, we show that the collisional model produces a correlated Markovian evolution for the joint density matrix of the multipartite system. The associated Linblad super-operator contains pairwise term…
Extraction of Singlet States from Noninteracting High-Dimensional Spins
We present a scheme for the extraction of singlet states of two remote particles of arbitrary quantum spin number. The goal is achieved through post-selection of the state of interaction mediators sent in succession. A small number of iterations is sufficient to make the scheme effective. We propose two suitable experimental setups where the protocol can be implemented.
Electron Fabry-Perot interferometer with two entangled magnetic impurities
We consider a one-dimensional (1D) wire along which single conduction electrons can propagate in the presence of two spin-1/2 magnetic impurities. The electron may be scattered by each impurity via a contact-exchange interaction and thus a spin-flip generally occurs at each scattering event. Adopting a quantum waveguide theory approach, we derive the stationary states of the system at all orders in the electron-impurity exchange coupling constant. This allows us to investigate electron transmission for arbitrary initial states of the two impurity spins. We show that for suitable electron wave vectors, the triplet and singlet maximally entangled spin states of the impurities can respectively…
Quantum state transfer in imperfect artificial spin networks
High-fidelity quantum computation and quantum state transfer are possible in short spin chains. We exploit a system based on a dispersive qubit-boson interaction to mimic XY coupling. In this model, the usually assumed nearest-neighbors coupling is no more valid: all the qubits are mutually coupled. We analyze the performances of our model for quantum state transfer showing how pre-engineered coupling rates allow for nearly optimal state transfer. We address a setup of superconducting qubits coupled to a microstrip cavity in which our analysis may be applied.
Photon localization versus population trapping in a coupled-cavity array
We consider a coupled-cavity array (CCA), where one cavity interacts with a two-level atom under the rotating-wave approximation. We investigate the excitation transport dynamics across the array, which arises in the atom's emission process into the CCA vacuum. Due to the known formation of atom-photon bound states, partial field localization and atomic population trapping in general take place. We study the functional dependance on the coupling strength of these two phenomena and show that the threshold values beyond which they become significant are different. As the coupling strength grows from zero, field localization is exhibited first.