Anomalous Decay of Quantum Resources: The Entanglement Sudden Death Mpemba Effect

Abstract:In classical thermodynamics, the Mpemba effect refers to the counterintuitive observation that hot water can freeze faster than cold water, manifesting as an anomalous crossing of dynamical trajectories. While analogues of this phenomenon have been explored in open quantum systems and spin-chain entanglement asymmetry, its connection to the finite-time decoupling of quantum correlations remains elusive. In this Letter, we uncover a distinct quantum Mpemba effect associated with entanglement sudden death (ESD). By analyzing two qubits interacting with local amplitude damping reservoirs, we demonstrate that a more strongly entangled initial state can experience a faster collapse into a separable state than a more weakly entangled one. This anomalous decay stems from the competition between initial coherence and excited-state population, where the latter acts as a catalyst for entanglement sudden death. We provide exact analytical derivations for the trajectory crossover and ESD time, and map the phase diagram to precisely identify the parameter regime where the effect occurs. Our results offer a new strategy for controlling the lifetime of quantum resources in dissipative environments.

arXiv:2605.23197 [quant-ph]

(or arXiv:2605.23197v2 [quant-ph] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2605.23197 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite

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