Abstract
Interaction between a quantum system and its surroundings — be it another similar quantum system, a thermal reservoir, or a measurement device — breaks down the standard unitary evolution of the system alone and introduces open quantum system behaviour. Coupling to a fast-relaxing thermal reservoir is known to lead to an exponential decay of the quantum state, a process described by a Lindblad-type master equation. In modern quantum physics, however, near isolation of individual quantum objects, such as qubits, atoms, or ions, sometimes allow them only to interact with a slowly-relaxing near-environment, and the consequent decay of the atomic quantum state may become nonexponential and possibly even nonmonotonic. Here we consider different descriptions of non-Markovian evolutions and also hazards associated with them, as well as some physical situations in which the environment of a quantum system induces non-Markovian phenomena.
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© 2005 Springer
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Salo, J., Clausen, J., E. Mazets, I. (2005). Non-Markovian Decay and Decoherence in Open Quantum Systems. In: Akulin, V., Sarfati, A., Kurizki, G., Pellegrin, S. (eds) Decoherence, Entanglement and Information Protection in Complex Quantum Systems. NATO Science Series II: Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, vol 189. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3283-8_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-3283-8_17
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-3281-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-3283-7
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