Integration not successful in Python QuTiP

Question

I have been trying to use QuTiP to solve a quantum mechanics matrix differential equation (a Lindblad equation). Here is the code:

from qutip import *
from matplotlib import *
import numpy as np

hamiltonian = np.array([[215, -104.1, 5.1, -4.3  ,4.7,-15.1 ,-7.8 ],
[-104.1,  220.0, 32.6 ,7.1, 5.4, 8.3, 0.8],
      [ 5.1, 32.6, 0.0, -46.8, 1.0 , -8.1, 5.1],
     [-4.3, 7.1, -46.8, 125.0, -70.7, -14.7, -61.5],
       [ 4.7, 5.4, 1.0, -70.7, 450.0, 89.7, -2.5],
    [-15.1, 8.3, -8.1, -14.7, 89.7, 330.0, 32.7],
     [-7.8, 0.8, 5.1, -61.5,  -2.5, 32.7,  280.0]])
H=Qobj(hamiltonian)
ground=Qobj(np.array([[ 0.0863685 ],
  [ 0.17141713],
  [-0.91780802],
  [-0.33999268],
  [-0.04835763],
  [-0.01859027],
  [-0.05006013]]))

rho0 = ground*ground.dag()
from scipy.constants import *
ktuple=physical_constants['Boltzmann constant in eV/K']
k = ktuple[0]* 8065.6
htuple = physical_constants['Planck constant in eV s'] 
hbar = (htuple[0]* 8065.6)/(2*pi)
gamma=(2*pi)*((k*300)/hbar)*(35/(150*hbar))

L1 = Qobj(np.array([[1,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L2 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,1,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L3 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,1,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L4 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,1,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L5 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,1,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L6 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,1,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0]]))
L7 = Qobj(np.array([[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,0],[0,0,0,0,0,0,1]]))
#Since our gamma variable cannot be directly applied onto the Lindblad operator, we must multiply it with the collapse operators:

L1=gamma*L1
L2=gamma*L2
L3=gamma*L3
L4=gamma*L4
L5=gamma*L5
L6=gamma*L6
L7=gamma*L7

options = Options(nsteps=100000)

results = mesolve(H, rho0, np.linspace(0.0, 1000, 20),[L1,L2,L3,L4,L5,L6,L7],[],options=options)
print results

This code is supposed to solve the following equation:

where L_i are matrices (in the list: [L1,L2,L3,L4,L5,L6,L7]), H is the hamiltonian, another matrix, is the density matrix, and is a constant equal to where T is the temperature, k is the Boltzmann constant, and , where h is Planck's constant.

Every time I run the code, it gives me the following error:

ZVODE--  At T (=R1) and step size H (=R2), the
       corrector convergence failed repeatedly
       or with abs(H) = HMIN
      In above,  R1 =  0.0000000000000D+00   R2 =  0.1202322246215D-36
/usr/local/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/scipy/integrate/_ode.py:853: UserWarning: zvode: Repeated convergence failures. (Perhaps bad Jacobian supplied or wrong choice of MF o
r tolerances.)
  'Unexpected istate=%s' % istate))
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "lindbladqutip.py", line 48, in <module>
    results = mesolve(H, rho0, np.linspace(0.0, 1000, 20),[L1,L2,L3,L4,L5,L6,L7],[],options=options)
  File "/projects/d6138712-e5f4-4d85-9d4d-77ce0a7b4a61/.local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/qutip/mesolve.py", line 264, in mesolve
    progress_bar)
  File "/projects/d6138712-e5f4-4d85-9d4d-77ce0a7b4a61/.local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/qutip/mesolve.py", line 692, in _mesolve_const
    return _generic_ode_solve(r, rho0, tlist, e_ops, opt, progress_bar)
  File "/projects/d6138712-e5f4-4d85-9d4d-77ce0a7b4a61/.local/lib/python2.7/site-packages/qutip/mesolve.py", line 866, in _generic_ode_solve
    raise Exception("ODE integration error: Try to increase "
Exception: ODE integration error: Try to increase the allowed number of substeps by increasing the nsteps parameter in the Options class.

After doing some debugging analysis, it seems like the first or second integration fails. The error tells me to increase the nsteps parameter, which I have tried. Even then it fails. Changing the list of times (the np.linspace function makes the list of times) also has no effect.

I am desperate to know what I can do to fix this error. Please comment if you all need more details.

Thanks for all your help!

Answer 1

From a programming point of view, the problem appears to be your value of gamma and therefore the size of your collapse operators. Print out gamma - it is of the order 10**25 - this seems to be what is preventing the solver from converging.

Just for testing (I'm an engineer, not a quantum physicist...), I put in a smaller value of gamma (e.g. 0.1), the solver seems to work and gives apparently reasonable output in results.states

I don't quite understand your gamma - it seems to have units of cm^-1s^-2 as you have set it up. I wonder if you only want to divide by hbar once, maybe. As I say, I'm not a quantum physicist, so I'm only guessing here based on what makes the programming hang together combined with a bit of dimensional analysis.

EDIT

OP indicates in comments that the wrong order of magnitude / units for gamma does seem to be the programming issue (i.e. preventing numerical calculus from converging), but isn't totally clear on how to calculate gamma. At this stage, it may be worth posting a question at either http://physics.stackexchange.com or http://math.stackexchange.com about that - referencing this one for context if necessary.

EDIT 2

I note you asked this related question on the physics site. This makes it clear where the expression for gamma comes from and thereby clarifies that the constant terms presented as simply 30 and 150 in this question actually have units (Energy and frequency respectively). This changes the dimensional analysis - the units of gamma are s^-1 or, with appropriate conversion, cm^-1.

It also shows the value you mention in comments - 300 cm^-1.