  The paradigmatic spin-boson model considers a spin degree of freedom
interacting with an environment typically constituted by a continuum of bosonic
modes. This ubiquitous model is of relevance in a number of physical systems
where, in general, one has neither control over the bosonic modes, nor the
ability to tune distinct interaction mechanisms. Despite this apparent lack of
control, we present a suitable transformation that approximately maps the
spin-boson dynamics into that of a tunable multiphoton Jaynes-Cummings model
undergoing dissipation. Interestingly, the latter model describes the coherent
interaction between a spin and a single bosonic mode via the simultaneous
exchange of n bosons per spin excitation. Resorting to the so-called reaction
coordinate method, we identify a relevant collective bosonic mode in the
environment which is then used to generate multiphoton interactions following
the proposed theoretical framework. Moreover, we show that spin-boson models
featuring structured environments can lead into non-Markovian multiphoton
Jaynes-Cummings dynamics. We discuss the validity of the proposed method
depending on the parameters and analyze its performance, which is supported by
numerical simulations. In this manner, the spin-boson model serves as a good
analog quantum simulator for the inspection and realization of multiphoton
Jaynes-Cummings models as well as the interplay of non-Markovian effects, and
thus, as a simulator of light-matter systems with tunable interaction
mechanisms.
