Reduced Quantum-Reference-Frame Channels for Open Quantum Systems

Quantum Physics arXiv:2607.05578 (quant-ph) [Submitted on 6 Jul 2026] Title:Reduced Quantum-Reference-Frame Channels for Open Quantum Systems Authors:Paolo Luppi, Viktoria Kabel, Flaminia Giacomini, Andrea Smirne View a PDF of the paper titled Reduced Quantum-Reference-Frame Channels for Open Quantum Systems, by Paolo Luppi and 3 other authors View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract:When reference frames are treated quantum mechanically, the subsystem structure of quantum systems is no longer absolute, but depends on the choice of the quantum reference frame (QRF). This raises a basic question: which dynamical properties are preserved across QRFs, and which depend on the physical reference used to define the system? We study this question in the general setting of open quantum systems. At the operational level, after a QRF transformation, the old reference frame and environmental degrees of freedom may be inaccessible and must therefore be traced out. This motivates the definition of reduced quantum-reference-frame channels: maps that connect the joint description in one frame to the accessible subsystem in another. We characterize their symmetry-constrained structure and define a regime in which a reduced entropy-coherence conservation law holds. We also identify when the induced reduced action on the open system admits a classical interpretation as random frame misalignment, and when it instead reflects quantum reduced-frame effects. We then apply the framework to pure-dephasing dynamics and derive a necessary and sufficient compatibility condition for population preservation. When the frame symmetry commutes with the open system's free Hamiltonian, coherences acquire a multiplicative frame factor, so that locally inferred decoherence rates split into environmental and reference-induced contributions. Ramsey interferometry gives this split a direct operational meaning. Finally, a gravity-motivated dephasing model illustrates how degradation of a phase reference can mimic signatures usually attributed to intrinsic decoherence mechanisms. Comments: Subjects: Quantum Physics (quant-ph); General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc) Cite as: arXiv:2607.05578 [quant-ph] (or arXiv:2607.05578v1 [quant-ph] for this version) https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2607.05578 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite (pending registration) Submission history From: Viktoria Kabel [view email] [v1] Mon, 6 Jul 2026 19:24:27 UTC (871 KB) Full-text links: Access Paper: View a PDF of the paper titled Reduced Quantum-Reference-Frame Channels for Open Quantum Systems, by Paolo Luppi and 3 other authorsView PDFHTML (experimental)TeX Source view license Current browse context: quant-ph new | recent | 2026-07 Change to browse by: gr-qc References & Citations INSPIRE HEP NASA ADSGoogle Scholar Semantic Scholar export BibTeX citation Loading... BibTeX formatted citation × loading... Data provided by: Bookmark Bibliographic Tools Bibliographic and Citation Tools Bibliographic Explorer Toggle Bibliographic Explorer (What is the Explorer?) Connected Papers Toggle Connected Papers (What is Connected Papers?) Litmaps Toggle Litmaps (What is Litmaps?) scite.ai Toggle scite Smart Citations (What are Smart Citations?) Code, Data, Media Code, Data and Media Associated with this Article alphaXiv Toggle alphaXiv (What is alphaXiv?) Links to Code Toggle CatalyzeX Code Finder for Papers (What is CatalyzeX?) DagsHub Toggle DagsHub (What is DagsHub?) GotitPub Toggle Gotit.pub (What is GotitPub?) Huggingface Toggle Hugging Face (What is Huggingface?) ScienceCast Toggle ScienceCast (What is ScienceCast?) Demos Demos Replicate Toggle Replicate (What is Replicate?) Spaces Toggle Hugging Face Spaces (What is Spaces?) Spaces Toggle TXYZ.AI (What is TXYZ.AI?) Related Papers Recommenders and Search Tools Link to Influence Flower Influence Flower (What are Influence Flowers?) Core recommender toggle CORE Recommender (What is CORE?) Author Venue Institution Topic About arXivLabs arXivLabs: experimental projects with community collaborators arXivLabs is a framework that allows collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on our website. Both individuals and organizations that work with arXivLabs have embraced and accepted our values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only works with partners that adhere to them. Have an idea for a project that will add value for arXiv's community? Learn more about arXivLabs. Which authors of this paper are endorsers? | Disable MathJax (What is MathJax?)