Canonical Quantum Mpemba Effect in a Dissipative Qubit

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a quantum analogue of the classical Mpemba effect using a dissipative qubit, showing that hotter initial states can relax faster than colder ones, with potential experimental realization.

Contribution

It introduces the canonical quantum Mpemba effect in dissipative qubits and proposes a hybrid quantum circuit for experimental observation.

Findings

Higher temperature initial states relax faster than lower ones.

Relaxation speed depends solely on initial temperature, not other parameters.

The effect is confirmed as a genuine cooling process via steady state temperature.

Abstract

The Mpemba effect, where a hotter system cools faster than a colder one under otherwise identical conditions, has been extensively studied in classical systems. In this work, we present the quantum analogue of the Mpemba effect using a dissipative qubit, which is referred to as the canonical quantum Mpemba effect. We demonstrate that, under the identical conditions, the relaxation dynamics of a qubit initialized in a thermal state with a higher temperature can be exponentially faster than those of a colder thermal state. Strikingly, this acceleration is determined solely by the initial temperature of the system, independent of other parameters. The relaxation is confirmed to be a genuine cooling process via the effective steady state temperature, mirroring its classical counterpart. Last, we propose a practical classical quantum hybrid algorithmic quantum circuit to realize this effect using superconducting qubits experimentally.