Generalized Uncertainty Relations and Long Time Limits for Quantum Brownian Motion Models

TL;DR

This paper derives generalized uncertainty relations for quantum Brownian motion models, providing bounds on quantum and thermal fluctuations, and analyzes the long-time behavior of the Wigner function for various potentials.

Contribution

It introduces new generalized uncertainty bounds and analyzes the asymptotic behavior of the Wigner function in quantum Brownian motion models.

Findings

Derived lower bounds on uncertainty functions after evolution.

Established relations between uncertainty and von Neumann entropy.

Analyzed long-time limits of the Wigner function for different potentials.

Abstract

We study the time evolution of the reduced Wigner function for a class of quantum Brownian motion models. We derive two generalized uncertainty relations. The first consists of a sharp lower bound on the uncertainty function, $U = (\Delta p)^2 (\Delta q)^2 $, after evolution for time $t$ in the presence of an environment. The second, a stronger and simpler result, consists of a lower bound at time $t$ on a modified uncertainty function, essentially the area enclosed by the $1-\sigma$ contour of the Wigner function. In both cases the minimizing initial state is a non-minimal Gaussian pure state. These generalized uncertainty relations supply a measure of the comparative size of quantum and thermal fluctuations. We prove two simple inequalites, relating uncertainty to von Neumann entropy, and the von Neumann entropy to linear entropy. We also prove some results on the long-time limit of the Wigner function for arbitrary initial states. For the harmonic oscillator the Wigner function for all initial states becomes a Gaussian at large times (often, but not always, a thermal state). We derive the explicit forms of the long-time limit for the free particle (which does not in general go to a Gaussian), and also for more general potentials in the approximation of high temperature.