Minimal Time Generation of Density Matrices for a Two-Level Quantum System Driven by Coherent and Incoherent Controls

Abstract: The article considers a two-level open quantum system whose dynamics is driven by a combination of coherent and incoherent controls. Coherent control enters into the Hamiltonian part of the dynamics whereas incoherent control enters into the dissipative part. The goal is to find controls which move the system from an initial density matrix to a given target density matrix as fast as possible. To achieve this goal, we reformulate the optimal control problem in terms of controlled evolution in the Bloch ball and then apply Pontryagin maximum principle and gradient projection method to numerically find minimal time and optimal coherent and incoherent controls. General method is provided and several examples of initial and target states are explicitly considered.