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arXiv · 2505.23041

On the generic increase of entropy in isolated systems

Zhiqiang Huang·Qing-yu Cai
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Abstract

We investigate the generic emergence of entropy in isolated quantum systems from the spectral structure of their long-time dephased states. Using a resolvent-based hierarchy, we separate the smooth energy-shell envelope of eigenstate intensities from their intra-shell fluctuations. The single-resolvent sector determines the coarse-grained intensity envelope and yields an entropy contribution that is quantitatively captured by a Lorentzian-Gaussian form. We then show that the difference between this envelope entropy and the von Neumann entropy is governed exactly by the conditional statistics of the residual intensity fluctuations. The two-resolvent covariance sector identifies their leading variance, while higher correlation sectors control the full non-Gaussian correction. A Gaussian-amplitude closure provides a benchmark entropy deficit, whereas exact diagonalization of an interacting Ising chain exhibits substantial finite-size deviations from this benchmark. These results establish a hierarchical spectral framework in which entropy beyond the smooth envelope is directly tied to multi-resolvent correlations, providing a systematic route toward its microscopic characterization.

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Zhiqiang Huang, Qing-yu Cai. 2026-09-10. On the generic increase of entropy in isolated systems. https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.23041

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