Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: The first law of thermodynamics imposes not just a constraint on the energy content of systems in extreme quantum regimes but also symmetry constraints related to the thermodynamic processing of quantum coherence. We show that this thermodynamic symmetry decomposes any quantum state into mode operators that quantify the coherence present in the state. We then establish general upper and lower bounds for the evolution of quantum coherence under arbitrary thermal operations, valid for any temperature. We identify primitive coherence manipulations and show that the transfer of coherence between energy levels manifests irreversibility not captured by free energy. Moreover, the recently developed thermomajorization relations on block-diagonal quantum states are observed to be special cases of this symmetry analysis. Published by the American Physical Society 2015
Source: Physical Review X
Authors: Matteo Lostaglio, Kamil Korzekwa, David Jennings, Terry Rudolph
Institution: Imperial College London
Language: English
Subfield: Statistical and Nonlinear Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,613
Award: G1011900814
OpenAlex ID: W2048691322