We develop a general theoretical framework of semiclassical phase reduction for analyzing synchronization of quantum limit-cycle oscillators. The dynamics of quantum dissipative systems exhibiting limit-cycle oscillations are reduced to a simple, one-dimensional classical stochastic differential equation approximately describing the phase dynamics of the system under the semiclassical approximation. The density matrix and power spectrum of the original quantum system can be approximately reconstructed from the reduced phase equation. The developed framework enables us to analyze synchronization dynamics of quantum limit-cycle oscillators using the standard methods for classical limit-cycle oscillators in a quantitative way. As an example, we analyze synchronization of a quantum van der Pol oscillator under harmonic driving and squeezing, including the case that the squeezing is strong and the oscillation is asymmetric. The developed framework provides insights into the relation between quantum and classical synchronization and will facilitate systematic analysis and control of quantum nonlinear oscillators.

Optimal entrainment of limit-cycle oscillators by strong periodic inputs is studied on the basis of the phase-amplitude reduction and Floquet theory. Two methods for deriving the input waveforms that keep the system state close to the original limit cycle are proposed, which enable the use of strong inputs for entrainment. The first amplitude-feedback method uses feedback control to suppress deviations of the system state from the limit cycle, while the second amplitude-penalty method seeks an input waveform that does not excite large deviations from the limit cycle in the feedforward framework. Optimal entrainment of the van der Pol and Willamowski–Rössler oscillators with real or complex Floquet exponents is analyzed as examples. It is demonstrated that the proposed methods can achieve considerably faster entrainment and provide wider entrainment ranges than the conventional method that relies only on phase reduction.

It is shown that coherence resonance, a phenomenon in which regularity of noise-induced oscillations in nonlinear excitable systems is maximized at a certain optimal noise intensity, can be observed in quantum dissipative systems. We analyze a quantum van der Pol system subjected to squeezing, which exhibits bistable excitability in the classical limit, by numerical simulations of the quantum master equation. We first demonstrate that quantum coherence resonance occurs in the semiclassical regime, namely, the regularity of the system’s oscillatory response is maximized at an optimal intensity of quantum fluctuations, and interpret this phenomenon by analogy with classical noisy excitable systems using semiclassical stochastic differential equations. This resonance persists under moderately strong quantum fluctuations for which the semiclassical description is invalid. Moreover, we investigate even stronger quantum regimes and demonstrate that the regularity of the system’s response can exhibit the second peak as the intensity of the quantum fluctuations is further increased. We show that this second peak of resonance is a strong quantum effect that cannot be interpreted by a semiclassical picture, in which only a few energy states participate in the system dynamics.

We study synchronization of a quantum van der Pol oscillator with a harmonic drive and demonstrate that quantum synchronization can be enhanced by performing continuous homodyne measurement on an additional bath linearly coupled to the oscillator and applying feedback control to the oscillator. The phase coherence of the oscillator is increased by reducing quantum fluctuations via the continuous measurement, whereas the measurement backaction inevitably induces fluctuations around the phase-locking point. We propose a simple feedback policy for suppressing measurement-induced fluctuations by adjusting the frequency of the harmonic drive, which results in enhancement of quantum synchronization. We further demonstrate that the maximum enhancement of quantum synchronization is achieved by performing quantum measurement on the quadrature angle at which the phase diffusion of the oscillator is the largest and the maximal information on the oscillator phase is extracted.

The asymptotic phase is a fundamental quantity for the analysis of deterministic limit-cycle oscillators, and generalized definitions of the asymptotic phase for stochastic oscillators have also been proposed. In this article, we show that the asymptotic phase and also amplitude can be defined for classical and semiclassical stochastic oscillators in a natural and unified manner by using the eigenfunctions of the Koopman operator of the system. We show that the proposed definition gives appropriate values of the phase and amplitude for strongly stochastic limit-cycle oscillators, excitable systems undergoing noise-induced oscillations, and also for quantum limit-cycle oscillators in the semiclassical regime.