Modeling dissipation in quantum active matter

TL;DR

This paper develops a quantum model for active matter by analyzing a driven quantum particle with noise and dissipation, providing insights into quantum active systems and guiding future experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a framework for modeling quantum active matter using time-local master equations and compares different dynamics to understand quantum active behavior.

Findings

Quantum effects influence particle trajectories under dissipation.

Different master equations yield distinct dynamical behaviors.

Results guide experimental realization of quantum active systems.

Abstract

Active matter denotes a system of particles immersed in an external environment, from which the particles extract energy continuously in order to perform directed motion. Extending the paradigm of active matter to a quantum framework requires an appropriate description of the environment. In this work, we consider a driven quantum particle undergoing noise and dissipation, with external driving exhibiting characteristics of classical activity. We model the non-unitary dynamics with time-local master equations and analyze the particle motion at different time scales for different forms of the master equations, satisfying different criteria. We systematically compare predictions on the dynamics of particle trajectories and thereby we uncover how the particle motion evolves under the interplay of quantum effects, dissipation, and active-like dynamics. These results are essential for guiding possible experiments aimed at realizing quantum analogues of classical active systems.