Non-Abelian Quantum Transport and Thermosqueezing Effects (2011.04560v2)

Abstract: Modern quantum experiments provide examples of transport with non-commuting quantities, offering a tool to understand the interplay between thermal and quantum effects. Here we set forth a theory for non-Abelian transport in the linear response regime. Our key insight is to use generalized Gibbs ensembles with non-commuting charges as the basic building blocks and strict charge-preserving unitaries in a collisional setup. The linear response framework is then built using a collisional model between two reservoirs. We show that the transport coefficients obey Onsager reciprocity. Moreover, we find that quantum coherence, associated to the non-commutativity, acts so as to reduce the net entropy production, when compared to the case of commuting transport. This therefore provides a clear connection between quantum coherent transport and dissipation. As an example, we study heat and squeezing fluxes in bosonic systems, characterizing a set of thermosqueezing coefficients with potential applications in metrology and heat-to-work conversion in the quantum regime.