  We investigate the non-equilibrium thermal quantum discord and entanglement
of a three-spin chain whose two end spins are respectively coupled to two
thermal reservoirs at different temperatures. In the three-spin chain, besides
the XX-type nearest-neighbor two-spin interaction, a multi-spin interaction is
also considered and a homogenous magnetic field is applied to each spin. We
show that the extreme steady-state quantum discord and entanglement of the two
end spins can always be created by holding both a large magnetic field and a
strong multi-spin interaction. The results are explained by the thermal
excitation depression due to switching a large energy gap between the ground
state and the first excited state. The present investigation may provide a
useful approach to control coupling between a quantum system and its
environment.
