Optimality of generalized Choi maps in $M_3$

A family of linear positive maps in the algebra of $3\times 3$ complex matrices proposed recently in Bera et al. arXiv:2212.03807 is further analyzed. It provides a generalization of a seminal Choi nondecomposable extremal map in $M_3$. We investigate when generalized Choi maps are optimal, i.e. cannot be represented as a sum of positive and completely positive maps. This property is weaker than extremality, however, it turns out that it plays a key role in detecting quantum entanglement.