Quantum correlation dynamics subjected to critical spin environment with short-range anisotropic interaction

Short-range interaction among the spins can not only results in the rich phase diagram but also brings about fascinating phenomenon both in the contexts of quantum computing and information. In this paper, we investigate the quantum correlation of the system coupled to a surrounding environment with short-range anisotropic interaction. It is shown that the decay of quantum correlation of the central spins measured by pairwise entanglement and quantum discord can serve as a signature of quantum phase transition. In addition, we study the decoherence factor of the system when the environment is in the vicinity of the phase transition point. In the strong coupling regime, the decay of the decoherence factor exhibits Gaussian envelop in the time domain. However, in weak coupling limit, the quantum correlation of the system is robust against the disturbance of the magnetic field through optimal control of the anisotropic short-range interaction strength. Based on this, the effects of the short-range anisotropic interaction on the sudden transition from classical to quantum decoherence are also presented.