Entropy from decoherence: a case study using glasma-based occupation numbers

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Main Authors: Coci, Gabriele, Parisi, Gabriele, Plumari, Salvatore, Ruggieri, Marco
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Coci, Gabriele
Parisi, Gabriele
Plumari, Salvatore
Ruggieri, Marco
author_facet Coci, Gabriele
Parisi, Gabriele
Plumari, Salvatore
Ruggieri, Marco
contents We compute the entropy-per-particle, $S/N$, produced by the decoherence of a coherent state interacting with an environment, using an analytical open quantum system approach. The coherent state considered is characterized by occupation numbers borrowed from the glasma fields produced in the early stages of high-energy nuclear collisions. The environment is modeled as the vacuum, and decoherence arises from the interaction of the state with vacuum fluctuations. We describe the system-environment interaction via a phase-damping model, which represents continuous measurements on the system without altering its energy or particle number. Starting from the occupation numbers typical of the Glasma in high-energy proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions, we find that the final $S/N$ after decoherence is lower than that of a two-dimensional thermal bath of ultrarelativistic gluons, except for proton-nucleus collisions at small values of $gμ$. Our results indicate that quantum decoherence alone does not generate sufficient entropy to transform the initial coherent state into a thermalized gluon bath.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_04809
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Entropy from decoherence: a case study using glasma-based occupation numbers
Coci, Gabriele
Parisi, Gabriele
Plumari, Salvatore
Ruggieri, Marco
High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
Quantum Physics
We compute the entropy-per-particle, $S/N$, produced by the decoherence of a coherent state interacting with an environment, using an analytical open quantum system approach. The coherent state considered is characterized by occupation numbers borrowed from the glasma fields produced in the early stages of high-energy nuclear collisions. The environment is modeled as the vacuum, and decoherence arises from the interaction of the state with vacuum fluctuations. We describe the system-environment interaction via a phase-damping model, which represents continuous measurements on the system without altering its energy or particle number. Starting from the occupation numbers typical of the Glasma in high-energy proton-nucleus and nucleus-nucleus collisions, we find that the final $S/N$ after decoherence is lower than that of a two-dimensional thermal bath of ultrarelativistic gluons, except for proton-nucleus collisions at small values of $gμ$. Our results indicate that quantum decoherence alone does not generate sufficient entropy to transform the initial coherent state into a thermalized gluon bath.
title Entropy from decoherence: a case study using glasma-based occupation numbers
topic High Energy Physics - Phenomenology
Quantum Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.04809