Which differential equations correspond to the Lindblad equation?

Victor Kasatkin, Larry Gu, Daniel Lidar

Abstract: The Lindblad master equation can always be transformed into a first-order linear ordinary differential equation (1ODE) for the coherence vector. We pose the inverse problem: given a finite-dimensional, non-homogeneous 1ODE, does a corresponding Lindblad equation exist? If so, what are the corresponding Hamiltonian and Lindblad operators? We provide a general solution to this problem, including a complete positivity test in terms of the parameters of the 1ODE. We also derive a host of properties relating the two representations (master equation and 1ODE), which are of independent interest.