Density matrix for the damped harmonic oscillator within the Lindblad theory

The time evolution of the density matrix of the damped harmonic oscillator is studied within the Lindblad theory for open quantum systems. The density matrix is represented via a generating function, which is obtained by solving a time-dependent linear partial differential equation derived from the master equation of the damped harmonic oscillator. Illustrative examples for specific initial conditions of the density matrix are provided. It is also shown that various master equations for the damped quantum oscillator, for damped collective modes in deep inelastic collisions of heavy ions and in different models of quantum optics are particular cases of the Lindblad equation and that only some of these equations satisfy the quantum mechanical constraints on the diffusion coefficients.