We put forward a measure for evaluating quantum speed limit for arbitrary mixed states of open systems by means of trace distance. Compared with some present measures, it can provide an optimal bound to the speed of the evolution. The dynamical crossover from no speedup region to speedup region happens during the spontaneous decay of an atom. The evolution is characteristic of the alternating behavior between quantum acceleration and deceleration in the strong coupling case. Under the condition of detuning, the evolution can be initially accelerated and then decelerated to a normal process either in the weak or strong coupling regime. In accordance with the uncertainty relation, we demonstrate that the potential capacity for quantum speedup evolution is closely related to the energy feedback from the reservoir to the system. The negative decay rate for the evolution results in the speedup process where the photons previously emitted by the atom are reabsorbed at a later time. The values of the spontaneous decay rate become positive after a long enough time, which results in the evolution with no speedup potential.
Local-field correction to the spontaneous decay rate of atoms embedded in bodies of finite size
