Search results for "Quantum system"
showing 10 items of 266 documents
Objective features in quantum states
2023
One of the key features of quantum mechanics is that any superposition of quantum states is in itself a legitimate quantum state. This has far reaching consequences, and is behind the stark difference in behaviour between quantum and classical systems. In particular, quantum systems are not -unlike classical ones- intrinsically objective, that is, different observers are not always able to agree on the properties of the system. Understanding the conditions for objectivity in quantum states is therefore key to address the wider issue of the quantum-to-classical transition. Here, we discuss several aspects of quantum objectivity, and in particular subtleties that arise to the definitions of o…
On-chip generation of high-dimensional entangled quantum states and their coherent control
2017
Optical quantum states based on entangled photons are essential for solving questions in fundamental physics and are at the heart of quantum information science1. Specifically, the realization of high-dimensional states (D-level quantum systems, that is, qudits, with D > 2) and their control are necessary for fundamental investigations of quantum mechanics2, for increasing the sensitivity of quantum imaging schemes3, for improving the robustness and key rate of quantum communication protocols4, for enabling a richer variety of quantum simulations5, and for achieving more efficient and error-tolerant quantum computation6. Integrated photonics has recently become a leading platform for the co…
Witnessing nonclassicality through large deviations in quantum optics
2019
Non-classical correlations in quantum optics as resources for quantum computation are important in the quest for highly-specialized quantum devices. The standard way to investigate such effects relies on either the characterization of the inherent features of sources and circuits or the study of the output radiation of a given optical setup. The latter approach demands an extensive description of the output fields, but often overlooks the dynamics of the sources. Conversely, the former discards most of the information about the single trajectories, which are observed in experimental measurements. In this work we provide a natural link between the two frameworks by exploiting the thermodynam…
Colloquium: Trapped ions as quantum bits -- essential numerical tools
2009
Trapped, laser-cooled atoms and ions are quantum systems which can be experimentally controlled with an as yet unmatched degree of precision. Due to the control of the motion and the internal degrees of freedom, these quantum systems can be adequately described by a well known Hamiltonian. In this colloquium, we present powerful numerical tools for the optimization of the external control of the motional and internal states of trapped neutral atoms, explicitly applied to the case of trapped laser-cooled ions in a segmented ion-trap. We then delve into solving inverse problems, when optimizing trapping potentials for ions. Our presentation is complemented by a quantum mechanical treatment of…
Integrated generation of complex optical quantum states and their coherent control
2018
Complex optical quantum states based on entangled photons are essential for investigations of fundamental physics and are the heart of applications in quantum information science. Recently, integrated photonics has become a leading platform for the compact, cost-efficient, and stable generation and processing of optical quantum states. However, onchip sources are currently limited to basic two-dimensional (qubit) two-photon states, whereas scaling the state complexity requires access to states composed of several (<2) photons and/or exhibiting high photon dimensionality. Here we show that the use of integrated frequency combs (on-chip light sources with a broad spectrum of evenly-spaced fre…
Phase transition of light on complex quantum networks
2012
Recent advances in quantum optics and atomic physics allow for an unprecedented level of control over light-matter interactions, which can be exploited to investigate new physical phenomena. In this work we are interested in the role played by the topology of quantum networks describing coupled optical cavities and local atomic degrees of freedom. In particular, using a mean-field approximation, we study the phase diagram of the Jaynes-Cummings-Hubbard model on complex networks topologies, and we characterize the transition between a Mott-like phase of localized polaritons and a superfluid phase. We found that, for complex topologies, the phase diagram is non-trivial and well defined in the…
The quantum trajectory approach to geometric phase for open systems
2005
The quantum jump method for the calculation of geometric phase is reviewed. This is an operational method to associate a geometric phase to the evolution of a quantum system subjected to decoherence in an open system. The method is general and can be applied to many different physical systems, within the Markovian approximation. As examples, two main source of decoherence are considered: dephasing and spontaneous decay. It is shown that the geometric phase is to very large extent insensitive to the former, i.e. it is independent of the number of jumps determined by the dephasing operator.
Observability of the sign of wave functions
1976
A change of the phase factor of -1 in the wave function of a molecular quantum system leads to observable consequences in transition probabilities between molecular quantum states in accordance with quantum-mechanical calculations.
Governing Survival Probability to Distill Quantum States
2005
A quantum system interacting with a repeatedly measured one undergoes a nonunitary time evolution pushing it into some specific subspaces. We deeply investigate the origin of the relevant selection rule, bringing to the light its connection with the survival probability related with the two-system interaction. The possibility of inducing an effective dynamics in the distilled subspace just during the distillation process is demonstrated.
Dynamics of a quantum particle interacting with a thermal bath and subject to an oscillating asymmetric bistable potential
2012
Exploiting the approach of the Feynman-Vernon influence functional [1] within the framework of the discrete variable representation (DVR) [2], we consider a quantum particle described by the Caldeira-Leggett model [3]. The particle, “moving” in an asymmetric bistable potential and subject to a periodical driving, interacts with a thermal bath of harmonic oscillators. In this conditions we study the dynamics of the particle by analyzing the time evolution of the populations in the DVR. Specifically we focalize on the position eigenstate located in the shallower well, i.e. metastable state, finding a non-monotonic behaviour of the corresponding population as a function of the frequency. Moreo…