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“A thermodynamic route to the quantum-to-classical transition “

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Thursday, 26. Feb. 2015

Audio-only-Recording as MP3-File (smallest possible size):

- Audio.mp3 (ca.32 Mb)

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Video-Recording for any system with MP4-support:

- Video.mp4 (ca.203 Mb)

15:15 – 16:25

Abstract :

Microscopic systems (such as electrons, atoms, or faint light fields) can be prepared, according to the principles of

quantum mechanics, in physical configurations with no classical counterpart. Such a possibility appears to be precluded

when the degree of 'complexity' of the system at hand (intended as its size, mass or the number of its elementary constituents)

grows towards the macroscopic domain. Indeed, our daily observations do not readily give us any evidence of non-classical

behaviour of the macroscopic world around us. Is there any reason preventing the establishment of quantum features at the

macroscopic scale? And how is quantumness lost as we abandon the microscopic domain?

These questions address the phenomenon known as quantum-to-classical transition, i.e. the process through which

quantum features are lost in favour of a fully classical description of a physical system.

The characterization of the QtC transition is one of the most interesting and challenging goals of modern research in

quantum mechanics. In this Colloquium I will discuss how fundamental progress can be made towards a better grasp

of the quantum-to-classical crossover by adopting a novel methodological approach based on the non-equilibrium

thermodynamics of quantum evolutions. Harnessing the fundamental interplay between complexity and quantumness

will underpin the development of more resilient architectures for quantum information processing.