Classical dynamics for linear systems: The case of quantum Brownian motion

The dynamics of linear quantum systems is classical in the Wigner representation, yet linear problems are often analyzed using such general techniques as influence functionals and Bogoliubov transformations. In fact, the classical equations of motion provide a simpler and more intuitive formalism for these systems. As an important example, we show that quantum Brownian dynamics in the independent oscillator model is described directly and completely by a c-number Langevin equation. The corresponding Fokker-Planck equation is always local in time, regardless of the environmental spectrum.