New paper on Phys Rev A by QTeQ members Andrew, Alessandro and Mauro! The work assesses the degree of macroscopic quantumness achievable through quantum optomechanical settings in both the single-photon and multi-photon coupling regime. The analysis has been performed in collaboration with long-term friend and collaborator Prof. Huynseok “Jacob” Jeong and his brilliant PhD student Hyukjoon Kwon (both at Seoul National University), and makes use of a tool for quantifying the macroscopic character of a quantum superposition brought forward by Hyunseok and Chang-Woo Lee (now at the Korea Institute of Advanced Studies). The details of the study can be found at
A. Carlisle, H. Kwon, H. Jeong, A. Ferraro, and M. Paternostro, On the limitations of a measurement-assisted optomechanical route to quantum macroscopicity of superposition states, Phys. Rev. A 92, 022123 (2015).
mauropaternostro
September 5, 2015
After an intense, enjoyable, and productive year spent at QTeQ, Oussama Houhou is now on his way back to the University of Constantine (Algeria) and his family. Twelve months passed too quickly for sure but QTeQ will welcome him back to his ‘northern irish home’ whenever possible! Ádh mór ort, Oussama and see you soon!
mauropaternostro
September 1, 2015
QTeQ hits the pages of Phys. Rev. A with a new paper on large deviation theory! Simon and Lorenzo, in collaboration with Gabriele, Mauro, and honorary QTeQ member Andre’, published a research paper proposing a new phase-space based method to assess the thermodynamics of the trajectories followed by a quantum harmonic oscillator coupled to N baths. The method, which allows the exact analytical derivation of the large deviation function for the oscillator, is a key step forward in the analytical study of the non-equilibrium thermodynamics of continuous variable systems. Further applications to come up soon!!
Details on the work can be found at
S. Pigeon, L. Fusco, A. Xuereb, G. De Chiara, and M. Paternostro, Thermodynamics of trajectories of a quantum harmonic oscillator coupled to N baths, Phys. Rev. A 92, 013844 (2015).
mauropaternostro
July 28, 2015
Great news: QTeQ hits the pages of Phys. Rev. Lett. with a new paper on the design of shortcuts to adiabaticity in quantum many-body systems. Steve as the leading star, Gabriele and Mauro, in collaboration with Massimo Palma (Palermo) and Rosario Fazio (SNS Pisa) have found a new, symmetry-based method to design shortcuts to adiabaticity in a ‘difficult’ many-body system such as the notorious Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model. The study, which is an all-TherMiQ collaboration, suggests that the long-range nature of the shortcuts, which is a typical feature when quantum many-body systems brought through a quantum critical point are concerned, is an inherent aspect of such control method, and not a byproduct of the transition.
Details of the work can be found at
Steve Campbell, Gabriele De Chiara, Mauro Paternostro, G. Massimo Palma, and Rosario Fazio, Shortcut to Adiabaticity in the Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick Model, Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 177206 (2015)
Check out also the fantastic press-coverage appeared on Phys.Org written by Lisa Zyga and our Steve.
mauropaternostro
May 12, 2015
QTeQ welcomes Rosaria Lena, an undergraduate student from the group led by Prof G. M. Palma. Rosaria will be studying in Belfast towards the completion of her Laurea thesis, working on a project on cold-atom physics and thermodynamics under the supervision of Gabriele.
mauropaternostro
May 1, 2015
The collaboration between QTeQ and the Brazilian team at UFABC led by Prof. Fernando Semiao proves even more fruitful! A new research paper, co-authored by Alessandro and Mauro, has appeared in Phys. Rev. E addressing the heat transport across a non-equilibrium chain of harmonic oscillators and its links (or lack thereof!!) with Fourier law. The paper, which has benefited enormously of the expertise of Alberto Imparato (Aarhus Universtiaet), has been led by Fernando ‘Boiuna’ Nicacio and supported by TherMiQ and the CNPq funded ‘Science without Borders projects awarded to Fernando Semiao and Mauro.
Details of the manuscript can be found at
F. Nicacio, A. Ferraro, A. Imparato, M. Paternostro, and F. L. Semião, Thermal transport in out-of-equilibrium quantum harmonic chains, Phys. Rev. E 91, 042116 (2015).
mauropaternostro
April 29, 2015
New paper in Phys. Rev. A for the QTeQ group! Gabriele and Mauro, together with collaborators from Brazil, Singapore, and Italy, addressed the problem of estimating the parameters and dynamics of an intra-cavity condensate through the tools of quantum estimation theory. The paper, which is the result of the work by QTeQ honorary members Margherita Zuppardo (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore) and Jader Pereira dos Santos (Universidade Federal do ABC, Santo Andre’, Brazil), and which benefited of the contribution by Prof. G. Massimo Palma (Palermo), and Prof. Fernando L. Semiao (UFABC), has now been published in Phys Rev A
M. Zuppardo, J. P. Santos, G. De Chiara, M. Paternostro, F. L. Semião, and G. M. Palma, Cavity-aided quantum parameter estimation in a bosonic double-well Josephson junction, Phys. Rev. A 91, 033631 (2015)
Well done Margherita and Jader!
mauropaternostro
April 14, 2015
QTeQ keeps on having very productive collaborations with its research partners!
Gabriele has recently published a paper in Phys. Rev. B with collaborators from the group of Prof. Patrick Ohberg at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh). The work analyses the low-energy behaviour of strongly repulsive bosons in a sawtooth lattice potential. Details can be found at
L. G. Phillips, G. De Chiara, P. Ohberg, and M. Valiente, Low-energy behavior of strongly interacting bosons on a flat-band lattice above the critical filling factor, Phys. Rev. B 91, 054103 (2015).
Mauro keeps on having fun with his Brazilian collaborators at Universidade Federal do ABC. A recent study on non-Markovianity in a ciruit-QED system has been recently reported in a Phys Rev A paper written with the group led by Prof. F. L. Semiao in Santo Andre’ (Brazil). Details available at
P. C. Cardenas, M. Paternostro, and F. L. Semiao, Non-Markovian qubit dynamics in a circuit-QED setup, Phys. Rev. A 91, 022122 (2015)
mauropaternostro
March 21, 2015
QTeQ’s work on non-equilibrium quantum thermodynamics has been featured in a recently published ‘Insight’ issue of Nature Physics! A Commentary by Chris Jarzynski, a Perspective article by P. Haenggi and P. Talkner, a Review by J. Eisert and co-workers, and a Progress article by Jukka Pekola, reported on the contribution given by QTeQ’s work to the advance of non-equilibrium quantum thermodynamics. The group’s experimental and theoretical work in this respect has been featured, thus giving a nice token of the impact that this is having on the community!
Details of the Insight issue can be found here
Way to go QTeQ!!!
mauropaternostro
February 3, 2015
QTeQ storms the APS and IoP Publishing with a bunch of newly appeared publications!
The group’s first paper on the field of large-deviation theory has just appeared in New Journal of Physics within the pages of a Special Issue on ‘Nonequilibrium fluctuation relations: from classical to quantum’. The work is a collaboration with A. Xuereb (QUB and Malta), J. P. Garrahan and I. Lesanovsky (both at Nottingham) and has been led with great success by Simon! Details are found at
S. Pigeon, et al., ‘Dynamical symmetries and crossovers in a three-spin system with collective dissipation’, New J. Phys. 17, 015010 (2015)
Simon’s paper is not the only signature of QTeQ in New J. Phys.! Indeed, an all-italian collaboration between Marco Genoni (UCL), Matteo Bina & Stefano Olivares (Milan), Gabriele and Mauro has resulted in a new open-loop feedback protocol for the squeezing of a mechanical oscillator through two-level ancilla. The work has recently appeared in New J. Phys. and details can be found at
M. G. Genoni et al., ‘Squeezing of mechanical motion via qubit-assisted control’, New J. Phys. 17, 013034 (2015)
Steve and long-term collaborator Gian Luca Giorgi (Turin) have published their work on the relation between quantum correlations and work extraction in a recent J. Phys. B paper. The guys analyze the conditions under which global transformations outperform local gates as far as maximal work extraction is considered. The paper is available at
G. L. Giorgi and S. Campbell, ‘Correlation approach to work extraction from finite quantum systems’, J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. 48, 035501 (2015)
Finally, Mauro and Carlo Di Franco (former QTeQ member, now at Imperial College London) have published their work on localisation effects in quantum random walks on the pages of Phys. Rev. A. Details at
C. Di Franco and M. Paternostro, ‘Localization-like effect in two-dimensional alternate quantum walks with periodic coin operations’,
Phys. Rev. A 91, 012328 (2015)
Surely, 2015 started with a bang…
mauropaternostro
January 23, 2015