Sustainability of Environment‐Assisted Energy Transfer in Quantum Photobiological Complexes

It is shown that quantum sustainability is a universal phenomenon which emerges during environment‐assisted electronic excitation energy transfer (EET) in photobiological complexes (PBCs), such as photosynthetic reaction centers and centers of melanogenesis. We demonstrate that quantum photobiological systems must be sustainable for them to simultaneously endure continuous energy transfer and keep their internal structure from destruction or critical instability. These quantum effects occur due to the interaction of PBCs with their environment which can be described by means of the reduced density operator and effective non‐Hermitian Hamiltonian (NH). Sustainable NH models of EET predict the coherence beats, followed by the decrease of coherence down to a small, yet non‐zero value. This indicates that in sustainable PBCs, quantum effects survive on a much larger time scale than the energy relaxation of an exciton. We show that sustainable evolution significantly lowers the entropy of PBCs and improves the speed and capacity of EET.     

Theoretical study on the exciton dynamics of coherent excitation energy transfer in the phycoerythrin 545 light-harvesting complex

The experimental observation of long-lived quantum coherence in the excitation energy transfer(EET)process of the several photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes at low and room temperatures has aroused hot debate.It challenges the common perception in the field of complicated pigment molecular systems and evokes considerable theoretical efforts to seek reasonable explanations.In this work,we investigate the coherent exciton dynamics of the phycoerythrin 545(PE545)complex.We use the dissipation equation of motion to theoretically investigate the effect of the local pigment vibrations on the population transfer process.The result indicates that the realistic local pigment vibrations do assist the energy transmission.We demonstrate the coherence between different pigment molecules in the PE545 system is an essential ingredient in the EET process among various sites.The coherence makes the excitation energy delocalized,which leads to the redistribution of the excitation among all the chromophores in the steady state.Furthermore,we investigate the effects of the complex high-frequency spectral density function on the exciton dynamics and find that the high-frequency Brownian oscillator model contributes most to the exciton dynamic process.The discussions on the local pigment vibrations of the Brownian oscillator model suggest that the local heterogeneous protein environments and the effects of active vibration modes play a significant role in coherent energy transport.     

Non-equilibrium steady-states of memoryless quantum collision models

We investigate the steady state properties arising from the open system dynamics described by a memoryless (Markovian) quantum collision model, corresponding to a master equation in the ultra-strong coupling regime. By carefully assessing the work cost of switching on and off the system-environment interaction, we show that only a coupling Hamiltonian in the energy-preserving form drives the system to thermal equilibrium, while any other interaction leads to non-equilibrium steady states that are supported by steady-state currents. These currents provide a neat exemplification of the housekeeping work and heat. Furthermore, we characterize the specific form of system-environment interaction that drives the system to a steady-state exhibiting coherence in the energy eigenbasis, thus, giving rise to families of states that are non-passive.     

铌基超导量子比特及辅助器件的制备

近年来超导量子计算的研究方兴未艾,随着谷歌宣布首次实现“量子优势”,这一领域的研究受到了人们进一步的广泛关注.超导量子比特是具有量子化能级、量子态叠加和量子态纠缠等典型量子特性的宏观器件,通过电磁脉冲信号控制磁通量、电荷或具有非线性电感和无能量耗散的约瑟夫森结上的位相差,可对量子态进行精确调控,从而实现量子计算和量子信息处理.超导量子比特有着诸多方面的优势,很有希望成为普适量子计算的核心组成部分.以铌或其他硬金属(如钽等)为首层大面积材料制备的超导量子比特及辅助器件(简称铌基器件)拥有其独特的优点以及进一步发展的空间,目前已引起越来越多的兴趣.本文将介绍常见的多种超导量子比特的基本构成和工作原理,进而按照器件加工的一般顺序,从基片选择和预处理、薄膜生长、图形转移、刻蚀和约瑟夫森结的制备等方面详细介绍铌基超导量子比特及其辅助器件的多种制备工艺,为超导量子比特的制备提供一个可借鉴的清晰的工艺过程.最后,介绍若干制备铌基超导量子比特与辅助器件的具体例子,并对器件制备的工艺与方法的优化做展望.     

量子相干态的二维电子光谱测量的原理、应用和发展

二维电子光谱是一种同时具有高的时间分辨率和光谱分辨率的非线性光谱学方法.它不仅可以对凝聚相分子复杂动力学过程进行直接测量,还可以测量不同电子态、电子态-振动态之间的量子相干过程.2007年,Flemming课题组利用二维电子光谱于低温77 K的条件下在捕光天线蛋白Fenna-Matthews-Olson中发现了能量传递过程存在量子相干现象.尽管后续的实验研究表明,该体系中实验观测到的量子相干现象不可能是由单纯的电子态相干引起的,然而这一实验现象的报道极大地激发了人们对天然或人工模拟光合系统中存在量子相干传能途径的探索,目前还是一个相当活跃的研究领域.本文旨在通过介绍二维电子光谱学原理、装置及其在光合作用体系能量传递中量子相干现象的应用,使二维电子光谱这种实验方法能够在更多的研究领域得以普及与推广.     

量子相干

量子相干不仅是量子力学中的一个基本概念,同时也是重要的量子信息处理的物理资源.随着基于资源理论框架的量子相干度量方案的提出,量子相干度的量化研究成为近年来人们关注的一个热点问题.量子相干作为一种物理资源也十分脆弱,极容易受到环境噪声的影响而产生退相干,因此开放系统中的量子相干演化和保持也是人们广泛关注的课题.另外,量子相干在量子多体系统、量子热动力学、量子生物学等领域也有着潜在的应用价值.本文介绍量子相干度量的资源理论框架和基于该框架定义的相对熵相干性、l1范数相干性、基于量子纠缠的相干性、基于凸顶结构的相干性和相干鲁棒性等量子相干度量函数,概述开放系统中量子相干演化的动力学行为、典型信道的量子相干产生和破坏能力以及量子相干的冻结等现象,同时例举量子相干在Deutsch-Jozsa算法、Grover算法以及量子多体系统相变问题研究等方面的重要应用.量子相干研究仍处于快速发展之中,期望本综述能为该领域的发展带来启示.     

A single-point measurement scheme for quantum work based on the squeezing state

To investigate the role of initial quantum coherence in work-probability distribution, it is necessary to consider an incomplete or partial measurement, in which the energy cannot be fully discriminated by the detector. In this paper, we use a harmonic oscillator with a coherent or squeezing state to realize this incomplete or partial measurement, and propose a unified framework of quantum work statistics for a closed system with an arbitrary initial state. We find that work is proportional to the change of the real part of the coherent state parameter, i.e., quantum work can be estimated by the coherent state parameter. The resulting work-probability distribution includes the initial quantum coherence, and can be reduced to the result of the traditional two projective energy measurement scheme(TPM) by squeezing the state of the harmonic oscillator. Our measurement scheme reveals the fundamental connections between measurement error and coherent work. By introducing a ‘coherent work-to-noise ratio', we find the optimal measurement error, which is determined by the energy difference between the superposed energy levels. As an application, we consider a driven two-level system and investigate the effects of driving velocity on work statistics. We find that only when the driving velocity matches the transition frequency of the system can initial quantum coherence play an important role.     

用约瑟夫森电荷比特系统实现一种特殊量子态的传输

构造了一种约瑟夫森电荷量子比特电路系统,并研究了四量子位态在该系统中的传输特性.对均匀与非均匀传输通道两种情形分别讨论了怎样通过控制外加磁通来实现激发态 1〉从第一量子位到第四量子位的理想传输.此外还分析了量子态在该系统中传输时的平均保真度,结果表明该系统不能传输一个任意态. 关键词： 量子态传输 约瑟夫森电荷比特     

Quantum Transfer Energy and Nonlocal Correlation in a Dimer with Time-Dependent Coupling Effect

The presence of coherence phenomenon due to the interference of probability amplitude terms, is one of the most important features of quantum mechanics theory. Recent experiments show the presence of quantum processes whose coherence provided over suddenly large interval-time. In particular, photosynthetic mechanisms in light-harvesting complexes provide oscillatory behaviors in quantum mechanics due to quantum coherence. In this work, we investigate the coherent quantum transfer energy for a single-excitation and nonlocal correlation in a dimer system modelled by a two-level atom system with and without time-dependent coupling effect. We analyze and explore the required conditions that are feasible with real experimental realization for optimal transfer of quantum energy and generation of nonlocal quantum correlation. We show that the enhancement of the probability for a single-excitation transfer energy is greatly benefits from the combination of the energy detuning and time-dependent coupling effect. We investigate the presence of quantum correlations in the dimer using the entanglement of formation. We also find that the entanglement between the donor and acceptor is very sensitive to the physical parameters and it can be generated during the coherent energy transfer. On the other hand, we study the dynamical behavior of the quantum variance when performing a measurement on an observable of the density matrix operator. Finally, an interesting relationship between the transfer probability, entanglement and quantum variance is explored during the time evolution in terms of the physical parameters.     

Triple-quantum-filtered imaging of sodium in presence of B(0) inhomogeneities

Triple quantum filtered sodium MRI techniques have been recently demonstrated in vivo. These techniques have been previously advocated as a means to separate the sodium NMR signal from different physiological compartments based on the differences between their relaxation rates. Among the different triple quantum coherence transfer filters, the three-pulse coherence transfer filter has been demonstrated to be better suited for human imaging than the traditional four-pulse implementation. While the three-pulse structure has distinct advantages in terms of RF efficiency, the lack of a refocusing pulse in the filter introduces an increased dependence on the main magnetic field inhomogeneities, which can sometimes lead to significant signal loss. In this paper, we characterize these dependencies and introduce a method for their compensation through the acquisition of a B(0) map and the use of a modified phase cycling scheme.     

Coherent control of Forster energy transfer in nanoparticle molecules: energy nanogates and plasmonic heat pulses

We study how Forster energy transfer from a semiconductor quantum dot to a metallic nanoparticle can be gated using quantum coherence in quantum dots. We show this allows us to use a laser field to open the flow of the energy transfer for a given period of time (on-state) before it is switched off to about zero. Utilizing such an energy gating process it is shown that quantum-dot-metallic-nanoparticle systems (meta-molecules) can act as functional nanoheaters capable of generating heat pulses with temporal widths determined by their environmental and physical parameters. We discuss the physics behind the energy nanogates using molecular states of such meta-molecules and the resonance fluorescence of the quantum dots.     

新型超导量子比特及量子物理问题的研究

近年来,超导量子计算的研究有了很大的进展.本文首先介绍了nSQUID新型超导量子比特的制备和研究进展,包括器件的平面多层膜制备工艺和量子相干性的研究.这类器件在量子态的传输速度和二维势系统的基础物理问题研究方面有着很大的优越性.其次,国际上新近发展的平面形式的transmon和Xmon超导量子比特具有更长的量子相干时间,在器件的设计和耦合方面也有相当的灵活性.本文介绍了我们和浙江大学与中国科学技术大学等单位合作逐步完善的这种形式的Xmon器件的制备工艺、制备出的多种耦合量子比特芯片,以及参与合作,在国际上首次完成的多达10个超导量子比特的量子态纠缠、线性方程组量子算法的实现和多体局域态等固体物理问题的量子模拟.最后介绍了基于这些超导量子比特器件开展的大量的量子物理、非线性物理和量子光学方面的研究,包括在Autler-Townes劈裂、电磁诱导透明、受激拉曼绝热通道、循环跃迁和关联激光等方面形成的一整套系统和独特的研究成果.     

带有Dzyaloshinski-Mariya相互作用的两比特纠缠量子Otto热机和量子Stirling热机

研究了以带有Dzyaloshinski-Mariya(DM)相互作用的两比特自旋体系为工质的量子纠缠Otto热机和量子Stirling热机.两种不同热机在各自的循环过程中,通过保持其他参量不变,只有DM相互作用发生改变,从而分析热机循环中DM相互作用与热传递、做功以及效率等热力学量之间的关系.研究结果表明:DM相互作用对两种热机的基本量子热力学量都具有重要的影响,但量子Stirling热机由于回热器的使用,其循环效率会大于量子Otto纠缠热机的效率,甚至会超过Carnot效率;得到了量子Otto纠缠热机和量子Stirling热机做正功的条件.因此,在这两个纠缠体系中,热力学第二定律都依然成立.     

The heat and work of quantum thermodynamic processes with quantum coherence

Energy is often partitioned into heat and work by two independent paths corresponding to the change in the eigenenergies or the probability distributions of a quantum system. The discrepancies of the heat and work for various quantum thermodynamic processes have not been well characterized in literature. Here we show how the work in quantum machines is differentially related to the isochoric, isothermal, and adiabatic processes. We prove that the energy exchanges during the quantum isochoric and isothermal processes are simply depending on the change in the eigenenergies or the probability distributions. However, for a time-dependent system in a non-adiabatic quantum evolution, the transitions between the different quantum states representing the quantum coherence can affect the essential thermodynamic properties, and thus the general definitions of the heat and work should be clarified with respect to the microscopic generic time-dependent system. By integrating the coherence effects in the exactly-solvable dynamics of quantum-spin precession, the internal energy is rigorously transferred as the work in the thermodynamic adiabatic process. The present study demonstrates that the quantum adiabatic process is sufficient but not necessary for the thermodynamic adiabatic process.     

从离散Wigner函数的角度探讨量子相干性度量

量子相干性是量子信息处理的基本要素,在量子计算中扮演着重要的角色.为了便于讨论量子相干性在量子计算中的作用,本文从离散Wigner函数角度对量子相干性进行了探讨.首先对奇素数维量子系统的离散Wigner函数进行了分析,分离出表征相干性的部分,提出了一种可能的基于离散Wigner函数的量子相干性度量方法,并对其进行了量子相干性度量规范的分析;同时也比较了该度量与l_1范数相干性度量之间的关系.重要的是,这种度量方法能够明确给出量子相干性程度与衡量量子态量子计算加速能力的负性和之间不等式关系,由此可以解析地解释量子相干性仅是量子计算加速的必要条件.     

量子等离激元管中窥豹

等离激元是金属中自由电子的集体振荡,其在物理,生物、化学、能源、信息等领域具有重要的应用前景.近些年来对等离激元量子效应研究的深入开展使得等离激元研究迈入了新阶段.本文首先简要介绍了等离激元的两个基本特性:光压缩效应和局域电场增强效应;随后回顾了量子等离激元方面的最新的进展,包括量子纠缠效应,量子尺寸效应,量子遂穿效应,等离激元在台阶势垒处的反射与激发,等离激元对电子相干效应的增强;最后对量子等离激元研究进行了总结和展望.     

若干In2Se3 化合物的晶体结构与电子特性

等离激元是金属中自由电子的集体振荡,其在物理,生物、化学、能源、信息等领域具有重要的应用前景。近些年来对等离激元量子效应研究的深入开展使得等离激元研究迈入了新阶段。本文首先简要介绍了等离激元的两个基本特性：光压缩效应和局域电场增强效应;随后回顾了量子等离激元方面的最新的进展,包括量子纠缠效应,量子尺寸效应,量子遂穿效应,等离激元在台阶势垒处的反射与激发,等离激元对电子相干效应的增强;最后对量子等离激元研究进行了总结和展望。     

量子显自极寒来——冷原子研究漫谈

冷原子体系的量子波动性、宏观量子相干性和人工可调控性,使其成为了一个全新的量子体系,其新颖的量子态和奇异物性的研究是国际上具有前瞻性和挑战性的前沿领域。自1995年实现稀薄气体玻色—爱因斯坦凝聚以来,从单组分、简单相互作用的研究逐渐过渡到多组分、复杂多体效应以及自旋—轨道耦合、非厄米、强关联、无序效应等新物理的研究。文章介绍了近几年冷原子方面的研究进展,包括冷原子的相关技术、冷原子在量子精密测量、量子模拟和量子计算方面的重要工作,期望给未来的研究以新启迪。     

自发相干效应研究

Spontaneously Generated Coherence（SGC） refers to a kind of quantum coherence induced by the process of spontaneous emission. It can greatly affect the dynamics of a quantum system, and accounts for a variety of important phenomena. Many efforts have been devoted to this topic, aiming to investigate the essence of quantum coherence and advanced technologies. However, the existence of SGC needs rigorous requirements which can hardly been fulfilled in atoms placed in a free space. Therefore we must give particular considerations to investigate this coherence experimentally. In this paper, a few interesting phenomena related to SGC are summarized, such as gain without inversion, coherent population trapping, phase sensitive spec- tra, and modifications of absorption, emission, and refraction. We also review the investigations on the reali- zation of SGC, such as modifying the vacuum, coupling levels with static fields, simulating SGC with coherence induced by coherent fields, and studying SGC in special materials.     

Steady bipartite coherence induced by non-equilibrium environment

We study the steady state of two coupled two-level atoms interacting with a non-equilibrium environment that consists of two heat baths at different temperatures. Specifically, we analyze four cases with respect to the configuration about the interactions between atoms and heat baths. Using secular approximation, the conventional master equation usually neglects steady-state coherence, even when the system is coupled with a non-equilibrium environment. When employing the master equation with no secular approximation, we find that the system coherence in our model, denoted by the off-diagonal terms in the reduced density matrix spanned by the eigenvectors of the system Hamiltonian, would survive after a long-time decoherence evolution. The absolute value of residual coherence in the system relies on different configurations of interaction channels between the system and the heat baths. We find that a large steady quantum coherence term can be achieved when the two atoms are resonant. The absolute value of quantum coherence decreases in the presence of additional atom-bath interaction channels. Our work sheds new light on the mechanism of steady-state coherence in microscopic quantum systems in non-equilibrium environments.