Collective Strong Quantum Mpemba Effect in Accelerated Quantum Detectors

Abstract:Collective coupling to the Minkowski vacuum allows uniformly accelerated quantum detectors to exhibit a strong quantum Mpemba effect, in which a state initially farther from equilibrium relaxes faster than a closer one. We establish the existence of this effect for every fixed finite number of detectors $N\geq 2$ at sufficiently small transverse separation within the pointlike secular master equation. The mechanism originates from two reflection sectors whose populations are conserved by the leading collective dynamics. Weak intersector transfer at finite separation generates an isolated, parametrically slow relaxation mode. A simple family of initial states permits its leading-order cancellation by matching the equilibrium sector populations, while a corrected preparation eliminates the slow-mode amplitude exactly. We construct a reference state that establishes a genuine reversal of trace-distance ordering. Numerical calculations and local-rate-preserving controls identify the collective origin of the effect, while spatially smeared detector calculations support its persistence within the second-order secular framework. The same mechanism extends to detectors coupled to a common thermal field, with analytically distinct slow relaxation rates. Thus, strong Mpemba relaxation is not exclusive to acceleration but emerges from a more general interplay between collective dissipation, reflection-sector conservation, and weak symmetry-breaking transfer.

arXiv:2610.24658 [quant-ph]

(or arXiv:2610.24658v1 [quant-ph] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2610.24658 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite

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