General description for nonequilibrium steady states in periodically driven dissipative quantum systems

Abstract

Laser technology has developed and accelerated photo-induced nonequilibrium physics, from both the scientific and engineering viewpoints. Floquet engineering, i.e., controlling material properties and functionalities by time-periodic drives, is at the forefront of quantum physics of light-matter interaction. However, it is limited to ideal dissipationless systems. Extending Floquet engineering to various materials requires understanding of the quantum states emerging in a balance of the periodic drive and energy dissipation. Here, we derive a general description for nonequilibrium steady states (NESSs) in periodically driven dissipative systems by focusing on systems under high-frequency drive and time-independent Lindblad-type dissipation. Our formula correctly describes the time average, fluctuation, and symmetry properties of the NESS, and can be computed efficiently in numerical calculations. This approach will play fundamental roles in Floquet engineering in a broad class of dissipative quantum systems from atoms and molecules to mesoscopic systems, and condensed matter.