Quantum Thermodynamic Emergence: A Derivation-Driven Theory of Abiogenesis as a Phase Transition

We present Quantum Thermodynamic Emergence (QTE), a derivation-driven framework in which abiogenesis is modeled as a phase transition in driven open quantum systems. Rather than postulating life’s emergence, we derive threshold conditions under which coherence, adaptive dissipation, and information integration must arise simultaneously.

Starting from the GKSL (Lindblad) formalism, we derive an upper-bound coupling law governing information growth under entropy production, and construct a scalar order parameter encoding joint necessity of the three observables. A No-Compensation Lemma establishes that no single observable can substitute for another.

Using a minimal Landau expansion, we identify a critical free-energy flux at which the system undergoes a symmetry-breaking transition into a persistent, information-integrating regime. Stability is characterized via Kramers escape and critical slowing down, yielding measurable precursors to transition.

The framework further predicts that substrate separation (e.g., RNA → DNA) is a thermodynamic requirement for persistence beyond a critical threshold.

QTE reframes abiogenesis as a regime transition governed by dynamical constraints, and provides multiple falsifiable predictions linking coherence, efficiency, and information structure in prebiotic systems.