On a class of stochastic differential equations used in quantum optics

Abstract

Stochastic differential equations for processes with values in Hilbert spaces are now largely used in the quantum theory of open systems. In this work we present a class of such equations and discuss their main properties; moreover, we explain how they are derived from purely quantum mechanical models, where the dynamics is represented by a unitary evolution in a Hilbert space, and how they are related to the theory of continual measurements. An essential tool is an isomorphism between the bosonic Fock space and the Wiener space, which allow to connect certain quantum objects with probabilistic ones.