English

Imaginary Phases in Two-Level Model with Spontaneous Decay

Quantum Physics 2008-11-26 v2

Abstract

We study a two-level model coupled to the electromagnetic vacuum and to an external classic electric field with fixed frequency. The amplitude of the external electric field is supposed to vary very slow in time. Garrison and Wright [{\it Phys. Lett.} {\bf A128} (1988) 177] used the non-hermitian Hamiltonian approach to study the adiabatic limit of this model and obtained that the probability of this two-level system to be in its upper level has an imaginary geometric phase. Using the master equation for describing the time evolution of the two-level system we obtain that the imaginary phase due to dissipative effects is time dependent, in opposition to Garrison and Wright result. The present results show that the non-hermitian hamiltonian method should not be used to discuss the nature of the imaginary phases in open systems.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.quant-ph/0207038,
  title  = {Imaginary Phases in Two-Level Model with Spontaneous Decay},
  author = {A. C. Aguiar Pinto and M. T. Thomaz},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:quant-ph/0207038},
  year   = {2008}
}

Comments

11 pages, new version, to appear in J. Phys. A