Detuning-Controlled Phase Transition from Passive to Active Regimes in Non-Markovian Quantum Batteries

Abstract

We investigate a two-qubit quantum battery where coherent charger-battery coupling competes with non-Markovian environmental interactions. By tuning the coupling strengths and detuning, we identify regimes in which environmental memory enhances energy storage and charging power, while strong dissipation suppresses ergotropy by driving the battery into passive states. We show that detuning plays a dual role: reducing dissipation and inducing a phase shift in the memory kernel that controls the interference between coherent energy exchange and environment-induced backflow. As a result, although the stored energy varies smoothly, the extractable work exhibits a discontinuous onset at a critical detuning, signaling a first-order phase transition in ergotropy. The corresponding phase diagram in the coupling-detuning plane reveals a sharp boundary between thermodynamically inactive and work-producing regimes. Our results demonstrate that phase-controlled coherence and non-Markovianity provide a powerful mechanism for optimizing work extraction in open quantum batteries, offering practical strategies for noise-resilient quantum energy storage.