Quantum Backreaction on Classical Dynamics

Abstract: Motivated by various systems in which quantum effects occur in classical backgrounds, we consider the dynamics of a classical particle as described by a coherent state that is coupled to a quantum bath via bi-quadratic interactions. We evaluate the resulting quantum dissipation of the motion of the classical particle. We also find classical initial conditions for the bath that effectively lead to the same dissipation as that due to quantum effects, possibly providing a way to approximately account for quantum backreaction within a classical analysis.