Shortcuts to adiabaticity in open systems: thermalization of an open quantum oscillator

The dynamical control of quantum systems is a necessity to advance quantum sciences and technology. Techniques known as shortcuts to adiabaticity (STA) provide an alternative to adiabatic driving, and have proven useful in a wide diversity of applications. However, they are currently restricted to the control of closed systems.
We introduce STA in open quantum systems, and develop a technique to control the thermalization of a driven open quantum oscillator. We provide the time modulation of the trap frequency and dephasing strength that allow for the preparation of an arbitrary thermal state in a finite time. Thereby, the super-adiabatic control of Gaussian states in non-unitary processes is demonstrated. Experimental implementation in the laboratory relies on stochastic parametric driving, which is readily accessible in a variety of platforms. The possibility to control cooling and heating of thermal states finds applications in finite-time thermodynamics.