On truncations of hierarchical equations of motion for finite-dimensional systems

Abstract

We study truncations of hierarchical equations of motion (HEOM) for finite-dimensional open quantum systems. We prove that for finite-dimensional approximations constructed with a Schur-complement type of terminator, the spectrum converges to that of the full HEOM as the truncation depth increases. We also prove that this approximation is free of spectral pollution: sufficiently deep truncations do not produce spurious unstable modes, provided the exact HEOM is stable. We illustrate the results for the spin-boson model.