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Main Authors: Christie, Robson, Trayford, James
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.17045
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author Christie, Robson
Trayford, James
author_facet Christie, Robson
Trayford, James
contents We explore an unconventional bridge between quantum mechanical density matrices and sound by mapping elements of the density matrix and their phases to auditory signals, thus introducing a framework for Open Quantum Sonification. Employing the eigenstates of the Hamiltonian operator as a basis, each quantum state contributes a frequency proportional to its energy level. The off-diagonal terms, which encode coherence and phase relationships between energy levels, are rendered as binaural signals presented separately to the left and right ears. We illustrate this method within the context of open quantum system dynamics governed by Lindblad equations, presenting first an example of quantum Brownian motion of a particle in a thermal bath, and second, a recoherence process induced by boundary driving that results in spin-helix states. This document serves as a companion to the corresponding audio visual simulations of these models available on the YouTube channel Open Quantum Sonification with the Python Codes on GitHub. The auditory analogy presented here provides an intuitive and experiential means of describing quantum phenomena such as tunnelling, thermalisation, decoherence, and recoherence.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2412_17045
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The Sound of Decoherence
Christie, Robson
Trayford, James
Quantum Physics
Physics Education
81S22
H.5.5; J.2
We explore an unconventional bridge between quantum mechanical density matrices and sound by mapping elements of the density matrix and their phases to auditory signals, thus introducing a framework for Open Quantum Sonification. Employing the eigenstates of the Hamiltonian operator as a basis, each quantum state contributes a frequency proportional to its energy level. The off-diagonal terms, which encode coherence and phase relationships between energy levels, are rendered as binaural signals presented separately to the left and right ears. We illustrate this method within the context of open quantum system dynamics governed by Lindblad equations, presenting first an example of quantum Brownian motion of a particle in a thermal bath, and second, a recoherence process induced by boundary driving that results in spin-helix states. This document serves as a companion to the corresponding audio visual simulations of these models available on the YouTube channel Open Quantum Sonification with the Python Codes on GitHub. The auditory analogy presented here provides an intuitive and experiential means of describing quantum phenomena such as tunnelling, thermalisation, decoherence, and recoherence.
title The Sound of Decoherence
topic Quantum Physics
Physics Education
81S22
H.5.5; J.2
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.17045