Eigenstate Thermalization Hypothesis and Quantum Jarzynski Relation for Pure Initial States

TL;DR

This paper investigates the validity of the quantum Jarzynski relation starting from pure initial states close to energy eigenstates, demonstrating that it holds well in nonintegrable systems.

Contribution

It extends the understanding of the quantum Jarzynski relation to pure initial states near energy eigenstates, beyond the typical thermal initial states.

Findings

Jarzynski equality holds accurately for nonintegrable systems from pure states

Work distributions are consistent with theoretical predictions

Supports the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis in this context

Abstract

Since the first suggestion of the Jarzynski equality many derivations of this equality have been presented in both, the classical and the quantum context. While the approaches and settings greatly differ from one to another, they all appear to rely on the initial state being a thermal Gibbs state. Here, we present an investigation of work distributions in driven isolated quantum systems, starting off from pure states that are close to energy eigenstates of the initial Hamiltonian. We find that, for the nonintegrable system in quest, the Jarzynski equality is fulfilled to good accuracy.