Related papers: Quantum mechanical evolution towards thermal equil…
We unify two recent results concerning equilibration in quantum theory. We first generalise a proof of Reimann [PRL 101,190403 (2008)], that the expectation value of 'realistic' quantum observables will equilibrate under very general…
Entanglement within a given device provides a potential resource for quantum information processing. Entanglement between system and environment leads to decoherence (thus suppressing non-classical features within the system) but also opens…
The time evolution of an extended quantum system can be theoretically described in terms of the Schwinger-Keldysh functional integral formalism, whose action conveniently encodes the information about the dynamics. We show here that the…
Non-equilibrium states of quantum systems in contact with thermal baths help telling environments with different temperatures or different statistics apart. We extend these studies to a more generic problem that consists in discriminating…
Quantum thermodynamics allows for the interconversion of quantum coherence and mechanical work. Quantum coherence is thus a potential physical resource for quantum machines. However, formulating a general nonequilibrium thermodynamics of…
A pure quantum state of large number N of oscillators, interacting via harmonic coupling, evolves such that any small subsystem n<<N of the global state approaches equilibrium. This provides a novel example where equilibration emerges as a…
The basic elements of the mathematical theory of states of thermal equilibrium of infinite systems of quantum anharmonic oscillators (quantum crystals) are outlined. The main concept of this theory is to describe the states of finite…
To understand under which conditions thermodynamics emerges from the microscopic dynamics is the ultimate goal of statistical mechanics. Despite the fact that the theory is more than 100 years old, we are still discussing its foundations…
Closed quantum many-body systems out of equilibrium pose several long-standing problems in physics. Recent years have seen a tremendous progress in approaching these questions, not least due to experiments with cold atoms and trapped ions…
One of the fundamental problems of quantum statistical physics is how an ideally isolated quantum system can ever reach thermal equilibrium behavior despite the unitary time evolution of quantum-mechanical systems. Here, we study, via…
Thermodynamic principles are often deceptively simple and yet surprisingly powerful. We show how a simple rule, such as the net flow of energy in and out of a moving atom under nonequilibrium steady state condition, can expose the…
The consistent definition of the thermodynamic functions of small open quantum systems in contact with an environment in equilibrium with a heat bath has been the subject of many debates in the quantum community. In the present work we…
The fact that macroscopic systems approach thermal equilibrium may seem puzzling, for example, because it may seem to conflict with the time-reversibility of the microscopic dynamics. We here prove that in a macroscopic quantum system for a…
Time dynamics of isolated many-body quantum systems has long been an elusive subject. Very recently, however, meaningful experimental studies of the problem have finally become possible, stimulating theoretical interest as well. Progress in…
Under the Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis (ETH), quantum-quenched systems equilibrate towards canonical, thermal ensembles. While at first glance the ETH might seem a very strong hypothesis, we show that it is indeed not only…
We use the quantum Brownian model to derive the uncertainty relation for a quantum open system in an arbitrarily-squeezed initial state interacting with an environment at finite temperature. We examine the relative importance of the quantum…
We discuss how the thermalization of an elementary quantum system is modified when the system is placed in an environment out of thermal equilibrium. To this aim we provide a detailed investigation of the dynamics of an atomic system placed…
Advances in controlling and measuring systems of ultra-cold atoms provided strong motivation to theoretical investigations of quantum dynamics in closed many-body systems. Fundamental questions on quantum dynamics and statistical mechanics…
We extend on ideas from standard thermodynamics to show that temperature can be assigned to a general nonequilibrium quantum system. By choosing a physically motivated complete set of observables and expanding the system state thereupon,…
We study the relaxation of a quantum system towards the thermal equilibrium using tools developed within the context of quantum information theory. We consider a model in which the system is a qubit, and reaches equilibrium after several…