Derivation of quantum work equalities using quantum Feynman-Kac formula

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new method based on a quantum Feynman-Kac formula to derive nonequilibrium work equalities in isolated quantum systems, providing insights into quantum fluctuation relations.

Contribution

It presents a novel approach that closely parallels classical methods, enhancing understanding of quantum fluctuation relations compared to previous techniques.

Findings

Derivation of quantum work equalities using the quantum Feynman-Kac formula

Higher similarity to classical fluctuation relation derivations

Potential for exploring new quantum fluctuation relations

Abstract

On the basis of a quantum mechanical analogue of the famous Feynman-Kac formula and the Kolmogorov picture, we present a novel method to derive nonequilibrium work equalities for isolated quantum systems, which include the Jarzynski equality and Bochkov-Kuzovlev equality. Compared with previous methods in the literature, our method shows higher similarity in form to that deriving the classical fluctuation relations, which would give important insight when exploring new quantum fluctuation relations.