Criticality of environmental information obtainable by dynamically controlled quantum probes

Abstract: A universal approach to decoherence control combined with quantum estimation theory reveals a critical behavior, akin to a phase transition, of the information obtainable by a qubit probe concerning the memory time of environmental fluctuations. This criticality emerges only when the probe is subject to dynamical control. It gives rise to a sharp transition between two dynamical phases characterized by either a short or long memory time compared to the probing time. This phase-transition of the environmental information is a fundamental feature that facilitates the attainment of the highest estimation precision of the environment memory-time and the characterization of probe dynamics.