Quantum-jump vs stochastic Schrodinger dynamics for Gaussian states with quadratic Hamiltonians and linear Lindbladians

The dynamics of Gaussian states for open quantum systems described by Lindblad equations can be solved analytically for systems with quadratic Hamiltonians and linear Lindbladians, showing the familiar phenomena of dissipation and decoherence. It is well known that the Lindblad dynamics can be expressed as an ensemble average over stochastic pure-state dynamics, which can be interpreted as individual experimental implementations, where the form of the stochastic dynamics depends on the measurement setup. Here we consider quantum-jump and stochastic Schrodinger dynamics for initially Gaussian states. While both unravellings converge to the same Lindblad dynamics when averaged, the individual dynamics can differ qualitatively. For the stochastic Schrodinger equation, Gaussian states remain Gaussian during the evolution, with stochastic differential equations governing the evolution of the phase-space centre and a deterministic evolution of the covariance matrix. In contrast to this, individual pure-state dynamics arising from the quantum-jump evolution do not remain Gaussian in general. Applying results developed in the non-Hermitian context for Hagedorn wavepackets, we formulate a method to generate quantum-jump trajectories that is described entirely in terms of the evolution of an underlying Gaussian state. To illustrate the behaviours of the different unravellings in comparison to the Lindblad dynamics, we consider two examples in detail, which can be largely treated analytically, a harmonic oscillator subject to position measurement and a damped harmonic oscillator. In both cases, we highlight the differences as well as the similarities of the stochastic Schrodinger and the quantum-jump dynamics.

Automated summary

This study examines the dynamics of Gaussian states in open quantum systems and obtains the solutions to Lindblad dynamics using analytical methods. It finds that Gaussian states remain Gaussian under stochastic Schrödinger dynamics but not necessarily under quantum-jump evolution. The study also proposes a method to generate quantum-jump trajectories based entirely on the evolution of an underlying Gaussian state.