Statistical mechanics of entanglement mediated by a thermal reservoir

Endre Kajari, Alexander Wolf, Eric Lutz, and Giovanna Morigi
Phys. Rev. A 85, 042318 – Published 16 April 2012

Abstract

Two defect particles that couple to a harmonic chain, acting as common reservoir, can become entangled even when the two defects do not directly interact and the harmonic chain is effectively a thermal reservoir for each individual defect. This dynamics is encountered for sufficiently low temperatures of the chain and depends on the initial state of the two oscillators. In particular, when each defect is prepared in a squeezed state, entanglement can be found at time scales at which the steady state of a single defect is reached. We provide a microscopic description of the coupled quantum dynamics of chain and defects. By means of numerical simulations, we explore the parameter regimes for which entanglement is found under the specific assumption that both particles couple to the same ion of the chain. This model provides the microscopic setting where bath-induced entanglement can be observed.

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  • Received 22 December 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.85.042318

©2012 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Endre Kajari1, Alexander Wolf1, Eric Lutz2,3, and Giovanna Morigi1,4

  • 1Theoretische Physik, Universität des Saarlandes, D-66123 Saarbrücken, Germany
  • 2Department of Physics, University of Augsburg, D-86135 Augsburg, Germany
  • 3Dahlem Center for Complex Quantum Systems, FU Berlin, D-14195 Berlin, Germany
  • 4Grup d’Òptica, Departament de Física, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, E-08193 Bellaterra, Spain

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Vol. 85, Iss. 4 — April 2012

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