arXiv subjects

Charlotte Bäcker

Publications and source records attributed to Charlotte Bäcker.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Quantum memory precludes mixed-unitary dynamics

Unital quantum channels, defined by their property of leaving the maximally mixed state invariant, form an important class of quantum operations. A distinguished subset of these channels can be represented as a probabilistic mixture of unitary evolutions. Characterizing channels that do not admit such a decomposition is in general a hard problem with significant implications for noise mitigation in quantum technologies and for fundamental problems in quantum information theory. Here we establish a link between mixed-unitarity of unital channels and the (quantum) nature of the memory effects in non-Markovian dynamics. Translating the problem into the language of process tensors, this connection yields a hierarchy of semidefinite programs that provides numerically efficient witnesses for non-mixed-unitary behavior, outperforming existing criteria. We demonstrate the power of this approach through illustrative examples of unital channels in dimensions three and four, and show how the method can detect non-mixed-unitary behavior based on incomplete channel tomography.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2026

How rare are Markovian quantum dynamics?

A profound understanding of decoherence and dissipation in quantum dynamics is crucial for the realistic modeling of the evolution of quantum systems. In open quantum dynamics one distinguishes between a memoryless, so-called Markovian evolution and dynamics incorporating memory effects, termed non-Markovian. In this work we study how prevalent memory effects are in the set of all such dynamics. We thus investigate how often a Markovian description is applicable. This question is approached by investigating randomly generated two-step qubit dynamics with respect to different concepts and witnesses of non-Markovianity. We observe that almost all dynamics are non-Markovian, and only a small (yet finite) fraction is Markovian. Furthermore, we study how this proportion changes when considering certain subclasses such as lower rank or mixed-unitary dynamics. Importantly, our results shed light on the relative ratios of -- and interrelations between -- the sets of dynamics that are non-Markovian with respect to different criteria. Finally, we investigate the fraction of dynamics in which the memory effects are necessarily of quantum nature and establish a connection between two recently developed concepts that characterize the quantumness of memory in non-Markovian dynamics.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Verifying Quantum Memory in the Dynamics of Spin Boson Models

We investigate the nature of memory effects in the non-Markovian dynamics of spin boson models. Local quantum memory criteria can be used to indicate that the reduced dynamics of an open system necessarily requires a quantum memory in its environment. We apply two such criteria, derived from different definitions put forward in the literature, to spin boson and two-spin boson models. For the computation of dynamical maps and process tensors, we employ a numerically exact method for non-Markovian open system dynamics based on matrix product operator influence functionals, that can be applied across broad parameter regimes. We find that, with access to single-intervention process tensors, one can generally predict quantum memory in the dynamics at low temperatures. Given instead only the dynamical map, we are still able to detect quantum memory in the case of resonant environments at short evolution times. Moreover, we confirm quantum memory in the stationary dynamical regime using process tensors with the correlated steady state of system and environment as initial condition.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Revealing the quantum nature of memory in non-Markovian dynamics on IBM Quantum

We investigate memory effects in non-Markovian dynamics on superconducting quantum processors provided by IBM Quantum. We use a collision-model approach to implement suitable single- and two-qubit dynamics with a gate-based quantum circuit. Coupling the system of interest to an ancilla allows for a characterization of the process with respect to non-Markovian memory effects in general, as well as concerning the quantumness of that memory. We demonstrate that current noisy quantum hardware is capable of verifying quantum memory in single-qubit dynamics. We then discuss why a generalization of this dynamics to the two-qubit case cannot directly be simulated in a way that allows quantum memory to be observed. Nevertheless, we present an alternative toy example that demonstrates how quantum memory of two-qubit dynamics can be witnessed using current noisy quantum computers.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Entropic witness for quantum memory in open system dynamics

The dynamics of open quantum system are often modeled by non-Markovian processes that account for memory effects arising from interactions with the environment. It is well-known that the memory provided by the environment can be classical or quantum in nature. Remarkably, the quantumness of the memory can be witnessed locally by measurements on the open system alone, without requiring access to the environment. However, existing witnesses are computationally challenging for systems beyond qubits. In this work, we present a tractable criterion for quantum memory based on the von Neumann entropy, which is easily computable for systems of any dimension. Using this witness, we investigate the nature of memory in a class of physically motivated finite-dimensional qudit dynamics. Moreover, we demonstrate that this criterion is also suitable for detecting quantum memory in continuous-variable systems. As an illustrative example, we analyze non-Markovian Gaussian dynamics of a damped harmonic oscillator.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

Local disclosure of quantum memory in non-Markovian dynamics

Non-Markovian processes may arise in physics due to memory effects of environmental degrees of freedom. For quantum non-Markovianity, it is an ongoing debate to clarify whether such memory effects have a verifiable quantum origin, or whether they might equally be modeled by a classical memory. In this contribution, we propose a criterion to test locally for a truly quantum memory. The approach is agnostic with respect to the environment, as it solely depends on the local dynamics of the system of interest. Experimental realizations are particularly easy, as only single-time measurements on the system itself have to be performed. We study memory in a variety of physically motivated examples, both for a time-discrete case, and for time-continuous dynamics. For the latter, we are able to provide an interesting class of non-Markovian master equations with classical memory that allows for a physically measurable quantum trajectory representation.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Spin-conserving Boltzmann theory for carriers and excitons in organic semiconductors

The rise of organic electronics calls for versatile modeling tools. In this context, we develop a semiclassical Boltzmann theory that describes transport and excitonic processes in crystalline organic semiconductors on equal footing. The generation of singlet and triplet excitons out of the ground state, their formation from free electrons and holes, the reverse processes, as well as the fusion and fission of excitons are included. The corresponding scattering integrals respect spin conservation, which requires matrix-valued distribution functions. They also include fermionic and bosonic many-particle effects such as Pauli blocking. We employ a multipole expansion of the distribution functions, where quadrupolar terms turn out to be essential for the triplet excitons. This work provides a basis for the modeling of organic solar cells, in which excitonic processes are crucial for the performance. Moreover, the theory is of general interest for transport and transitions of multiple (quasi-) particle species carrying spin in nonequilibrium systems.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗