Cooperative few-level fluctuations in coupled quantum systems

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Abstract
Fluctuations and noise are typical features of mesoscopic systems. Here we study the quantum-stochastic dynamics of an interacting network of local few-level subsystems. Controlled by the environment, this network is shown to exhibit a large repertoire of different behavioral patterns, including uncorrelated and correlated ‘‘quantum jumps’’: Such cooperation should be generic for certain networks and expected, e.g., also for various optically driven quasimolecular structures. When applied to a defect network controlling the current through a small tunnel junction, large-amplitude two-level current fluctuations appear, in agreement with experiment.