2015-03-25
10:15 at HCI J 574

Beyond the strict weak-coupling limit: just do it but stay coherent

Jérôme Flakowski

Polymer Physics, Department of Materials, ETH Zurich

Can we say something new about the quantum dissipative evolution of a "simple" two-level quantum system? Its decay times? Thanks to a recently developed set of thermodynamically consistent nonlinear master equations we explore these questions in the linear response regime and have so far found a positive answer. Most importantly, we observed a temperature-dependent bifurcation phenomenon in the T2 over 2*T1 ratio reflected in the time-evolution by a biexponential decay of the polarisations. Relying on these renewed understandings, we briefly reinterpret some experimental results. Finally, based on these new insights we discuss future prospects ranging from nanoelectronics to light-harvesting complexes.