Entropy of Quantum States

Given the algebra of observables of a quantum system subject to selection rules, a state can be represented by different density matrices. As a result, different von Neumann entropies can be associated with the same state. Motivated by a minimality property of the von Neumann entropy of a density matrix with respect to its possible decompositions into pure states, we give a purely algebraic definition of entropy for states of an algebra of observables, thus solving the above ambiguity. The entropy so-defined satisfies all the desirable thermodynamic properties and reduces to the von Neumann entropy in the quantum mechanical case. Moreover, it can be shown to be equal to the von Neumann entropy of the unique representative density matrix belonging to the operator algebra of a multiplicity-free Hilbert-space representation.     

Entanglement entropy of 2D conformal quantum critical points: hearing the shape of a quantum drum

The entanglement entropy of a pure quantum state of a bipartite system A union or logical sumB is defined as the von Neumann entropy of the reduced density matrix obtained by tracing over one of the two parts. In one dimension, the entanglement of critical ground states diverges logarithmically in the subsystem size, with a universal coefficient that for conformally invariant critical points is related to the central charge of the conformal field theory. We find that the entanglement entropy of a standard class of z=2 conformal quantum critical points in two spatial dimensions, in addition to a nonuniversal "area law" contribution linear in the size of the AB boundary, generically has a universal logarithmically divergent correction, which is completely determined by the geometry of the partition and by the central charge of the field theory that describes the critical wave function.     

Phase separation in one-dimensional hard-core boson system with two- and three-body interactions

We investigate the ground state phase diagram of hard-core boson system with repulsive two-body and attractive three-body interactions in one-dimensional optical lattice. When these two interactions are comparable and increasing the hopping rate, physically intuitive analysis indicates that there exists a phase separation region between the solid phase with charge density wave order and superfluid phase. We identify these phases and phase transitions by numerically analyzing the density distribution, structure factor of density-density correlation function, three-body correlation function and von Neumann entropy estimator obtained by density matrix renormalization group method. These phases and phase transitions are expected to be observed in the ultra-cold polar molecule experiments by properly tuning interaction parameters as suggested in Methods by Büchler et al. [Nat. Phys. 3, 726 (2007)], which is constructive to understand the physics of ubiquitous insulating-superconducting phase transitions in condensed matter systems.     

Calculation of von Neumann entropy for hydrogen and positronium negative ions

In the present work, we carry out calculations of von Neumann entropies and linear entropies for the hydrogen negative ion and the positronium negative ion. We concentrate on the spatial (electron–electron orbital) entanglement in these ions by using highly correlated Hylleraas functions to represent their ground states, and to take care of correlation effects. We apply the Schmidt decomposition method on the partial-wave expanded two-electron wave functions, and from which the one-particle reduced density matrix can be obtained, leading to the quantifications of linear entropy and von Neumann entropy in the H⁻ and Ps⁻ ions.     

A NEW MEASURE FOR THE JAYNES-CUMMINGS MODEL DYNAMICS DISTANCE BETWEEN DENSITY OPERATORS

We use the distance between density operators to study the dynamical evolution of the Jaynes-Cummings model with an additional Kerr medium, and to compare the result with the corresponding von Neumann entropy. We have shown that the distance between density operators can provide more detailed information about the dynamical behavior of the quantum system than von Neumann entropy.     

A NEW MEASURE FOR THE JAYNES-CUMMINGS MODEL DYNAMICS --- DISTANCE BETWEEN DENSITY OPERATORS

We use the distance between density operators to study the dynamical evolution of the Jaynes-Cummings model with an additional Kerr medium, and to compare the result with the corresponding von Neumann entropy. We have shown that the distance between density operators can provide more detailed information about the dynamical behavior of the quantum system than von Neumann entropy.     

Probability space of wave functions

It is well known that in quantum mechanics, when the mean value of an observable is given, entropy maximization (von Neumann, Born, Jaynes) can be successfully applied for constructing a probability distribution on the set of possible values of that observable. In this paper, the entropy maximization technique is extended to the complex domain in order to construct an unbiased probability measure on the set of all wave functions. In particular, a justification and a generalization of the Wiener-Siegel probability distribution of Gaussian type in the differential space of wave functions are given.     

Quantification of Entanglement Entropy in Helium by the Schmidt–Slater Decomposition Method

In this work, we present an investigation on the spatial entanglement entropies in the helium atom by using highly correlated Hylleraas functions to represent the S-wave states. Singlet-spin 1sns ¹ S ^e states (with n = 1 to 6) and triplet-spin 1sns ³ S ^e states (with n = 2 to 6) are investigated. As a measure on the spatial entanglement, von Neumann entropy and linear entropy are calculated. Furthermore, we apply the Schmidt–Slater decomposition method on the two-electron wave functions, and obtain eigenvalues of the one-particle reduced density matrix, from which the linear entropy and von Neumann entropy can be determined.     

Dynamical entanglement for Fermi coupled stretching and bending modes

The dynamical entanglement for Fermi coupled C--H stretch and bend vibrations in molecule CHD₃ is studied in terms of two negativities and the reduced von Neumann entropy, where initial states are taken to be direct products of photon-added coherent states on each mode. It is demonstrated that the negativity defined by the sum of negative eigenvalues of the partial transpose of density matrices is positively correlated with the von Neumann entropy. The entanglement difference between photon-added coherent states and usual coherent states is discussed as well.     

The master equation for a two-level atom in a laser field with squeezing-like terms

In this paper, we derive the time dependent solution of the effective master equation for the reduced density matrix operator of a two-level atom driven by a strong classical field and damped into a “modelled” reservoir with non-flat density of modes. The effects of different parameters on the atomic inversion, the von Neumann entropy and the entropy squeezing are discussed.     

Von Neumann entropy in a Rashba-Dresselhaus nanodot; dynamical electronic spin-orbit entanglement

The main purpose of the present article is to report the characteristics of von Neumann entropy, thereby, the electronic hybrid entanglement, in the heterojunction of two semiconductors, with due attention to the Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interactions. To this end, we cast the von Neumann entropy in terms of spin polarization and compute its time evolution; with a vast span of applications. It is assumed that gate potentials are applied to the heterojunction, providing a two dimensional parabolic confining potential (forming an isotropic nanodot at the junction), as well as means of controlling the spin-orbit couplings. The spin degeneracy is also removed, even at electronic zero momentum, by the presence of an external magnetic field which, in turn, leads to the appearance of Landau states. We then proceed by computing the time evolution of the corresponding von Neumann entropy from a separable (spin-polarized) initial state. The von Neumann entropy, as we show, indicates that electronic hybrid entanglement does occur between spin and two-dimensional Landau levels. Our results also show that von Neumann entropy, as well as the degree of spin-orbit entanglement, periodically collapses and revives. The characteristics of such behavior; period, amplitude, etc., are shown to be determined from the controllable external agents. Moreover, it is demonstrated that the phenomenon of collapse-revivals’ in the behavior of von Neumann entropy, equivalently, electronic hybrid entanglement, is accompanied by plateaus (of great importance in quantum computation schemes) whose durations are, again, controlled by the external elements. Along these lines, we also make a comparison between effects of the two spin-orbit couplings on the entanglement (von Neumann entropy) characteristics. The finer details of the electronic hybrid entanglement, which may be easily verified through spin polarization measurements, are also accreted and discussed. The novel results of the present article, with potent applications in the field of quantum information processing, provide a deeper understanding of the electronic von Neumann entropy and hybrid entanglement that occurs in two-dimensional nanodots.     

Tomographic characteristics of spin states

Spin states are studied in the tomographic-probability representation. The standard probability distribution of spin projection onto a direction in space is used instead of the spinor or the density matrix to identify the quantum state. The Shannon entropy and information are associated with the spin tomographic probability. A short review of the probability-theory notions is presented. Analysis of tomographic entropy and tomographic information for the Werner state is considered. The probability representation is used to describe a spin-3/2 particle and two qubits. The connection of tomographic entropy with the von Neumann entropy is discussed.     

Dimerized phase and entanglement in the one-dimensional spin-1 bilinear biquadratic model

Dimerized phase and quantum entanglement are investigated in the one-dimensional spin-1 bilinear biquadratic model. Employing the infinite matrix product state representation, groundstate wavefunctions are numerically obtained by using the infinite time evolving block decimation method in the infinite lattice system. From a bipartite entanglement measure of the groundstates, i.e., von Neumann entropy, the phase transition points can be clearly extracted. Moreover, the even-bond and odd-bond von Neumann entropies show two different values in the spontaneous dimerized phase. It implies that the quantum entanglement can distinguish the two degenerate groundstates. Then, we define a dimer entropy in the spontaneous dimerized phase. Comparing to the dimer order parameter, the dimer entropy can play a role of a local order parameter to characterize the spontaneous dimerized phase.     

Standard quantum mechanics featuring probabilities instead of wave functions

A new formulation of quantum mechanics (probability representation) is discussed. In this representation, a quantum state is described by a standard positive definite probability distribution (tomogram) rather than by a wave function. An unambiguous relation (analog of Radon transformation) between the density operator and a tomogram is constructed both for continuous coordinates and for spin variables. A novel feature of a state, tomographic entropy, is considered, and its connection with von Neumann entropy is discussed. A one-to-one map of quantum observables (Hermitian operators) on positive probability distributions is found.     

Quantum theory of irreversibility

A generalization of the Gibbs–von Neumann entropy is proposed based on the quantum BBGKY (Bogolyubov–Born–Green–Kirkwood–Yvon) hierarchy as the non-equilibrium entropy for an N$N$-body system. By using a generalization of the Liouville–von Neumann equation describing the evolution of a density superoperator, the entropy production for an isolated system is calculated, being non-zero in general. The existence of a non-zero entropy production allows us, following the procedure of non-equilibrium thermodynamics to introduce a master matrix for which a microscopic expression is obtained. After this, as a test of our theory the quantum Boltzmann equation is derived in terms of a transition superoperator related to this master matrix.     

A-entropy for spectrally absolutely continuous observables

In this paper the notion of entropy of a density operator with respect to spectrally absolutely continuous observable is investigated. The concept of such an entropy is introduced and various possibilities of defining it are discussed. These entropies are examined with regard to their usual properties. We show that this kind of entropy increases after measurement of an observable with a continuous spectrum in the sense of von Neumann and assumes its maximum on a Gaussian state.     

Entanglement between nuclear spin and field mode in GaAs semiconductors

In this paper we investigate entanglement between the nuclear spin and field mode in a GaAs semiconductor. The eigenfuctions of nuclear spin in the quantized external field are obtained and thus the von Neumann entropy is evaluated explicitly. It is shown that the von Neumann entropy monotonously increases with the spin-field coupling constant but monotonously decreases with the anisotropy energy.     

Perturbation theory of von Neumann entropy

In quantum information theory, von Neumann entropy plays an important role; it is related to quantum channel capacities. Only for a few states can one obtain their entropies. In a continuous variable system, numeric evaluation of entropy is not easy due to infinite dimensions. We develop the perturbation theory for systematically calculating von Neumann entropy of a non-degenerate system as well as a degenerate system.     

Entropy and exact matrix-product representation of the Laughlin wave function

An analytical expression for the von Neumann entropy of the Laughlin wave function is obtained for any possible bipartition between the particles described by this wave function, for a filling fraction nu=1. Also, for a filling fraction nu=1/m, where m is an odd integer, an upper bound on this entropy is exhibited. These results yield a bound on the smallest possible size of the matrices for an exact representation of the Laughlin ansatz in terms of a matrix-product state. An analytical matrix-product state representation of this state is proposed in terms of representations of the Clifford algebra. For nu=1, this representation is shown to be asymptotically optimal in the limit of a large number of particles.     

The second law of thermodynamics under unitary evolution and external operations

The von Neumann entropy cannot represent the thermodynamic entropy of equilibrium pure states in isolated quantum systems. The diagonal entropy, which is the Shannon entropy in the energy eigenbasis at each instant of time, is a natural generalization of the von Neumann entropy and applicable to equilibrium pure states. We show that the diagonal entropy is consistent with the second law of thermodynamics upon arbitrary external unitary operations. In terms of the diagonal entropy, thermodynamic irreversibility follows from the facts that quantum trajectories under unitary evolution are restricted by the Hamiltonian dynamics and that the external operation is performed without reference to the microscopic state of the system.