Open quantum system approach for heavy quark thermalization*

Abstract

Abstract We treat heavy quark as an open quantum system in a hot medium and rederive the stochastic Schrödinger equation (SSE) from the full Schrödinger equation for both heavy quarks and the medium. We apply the SSE to the dynamical evolutions of a heavy quark (as a system) in the static hot medium (as an environment). Heavy quarks interact with the medium via random scatterings, which exchange the momentum and phase factor randomly between two wave functions of the system and the environment. The exchange of momentum and phase factor results in the transition between different eigenstates of the system. These are included via an external stochastic potential in the Hamiltonian of SSE. Stochastic wave functions of a heavy quark are evolved with the stochastic external potential. The mean wave functions and corresponding momentum distributions of heavy quarks are obtained after the ensemble average over a large set of stochastic wave functions. We present the thermalization of heavy quarks in the static medium with different coupling strengths.