Strategies to measure a quantum state

We consider the problem of determining the mixed quantum state of a large but finite number of identically prepared quantum systems from data obtained in a sequence of ideal (von Neumann) measurements, each performed on an individual copy of the system. In contrast to previous approaches, we do not average over the possible unknown states but work out a “typical” probability distribution on the set of states, as implied by the experimental data. As a consequence, any measure of knowledge about the unknown state and thus any notion of “best strategy” (i.e., the choice of observables to be measured, and the number of times they are measured) depend on the unknown state. By learning from previously obtained data, the experimentalist re-adjusts the observable to be measured in the next step, eventually approaching an optimal strategy. We consider two measures of knowledge and exhibit all “best” strategies for the case of a two-dimensional Hilbert space. Finally, we discuss some features of the problem in higher dimensions and in the infinite dimensional case.     

On Wigner functions and a damped star product in dissipative phase-space quantum mechanics

Dito and Turrubiates recently introduced an interesting model of the dissipative quantum mechanics of a damped harmonic oscillator in phase space. Its key ingredient is a non-Hermitian deformation of the Moyal star product with the damping constant as deformation parameter. We compare the Dito-Turrubiates scheme with phase-space quantum mechanics (or deformation quantization) based on other star products, and extend it to incorporate Wigner functions. The deformed (or damped) star product is related to a complex Hamiltonian, and so necessitates a modified equation of motion involving complex conjugation. We find that with this change the Wigner function satisfies the classical equation of motion. This seems appropriate since non-dissipative systems with quadratic Hamiltonians share this property.     

Newton-Leibniz integration for ket-bra operators in quantum mechanics (V)—Deriving normally ordered bivariate-normal-distribution form of density operators and developing their phase space formalism

We show that Newton-Leibniz integration over Dirac’s ket-bra projection operators with continuum variables, which can be performed by the technique of integration within ordered product (IWOP) of operators [Hong-yi Fan, Hai-liang Lu, Yue Fan, Ann. Phys. 321 (2006) 480], can directly recast density operators and generalized Wigner operators into normally ordered bivariate-normal-distribution form, which has resemblance in statistics. In this way the phase space formalism of quantum mechanics can be developed. The Husimi operator, entangled Husimi operator and entangled Wigner operator for entangled particles with different masses are naturally introduced by virtue of the IWOP technique, and their physical meanings are explained.     

Quantum circuits for controlled teleportation of two-particle entanglement via a W state

A protocol for three-party controlled quantum teleportation is discussed. It is shown that an unknown two-particle entanglement can be teleported to any one of two receivers via the only one three-particle W state. We summarize all different unitary transformations performed by the receiver with a concise formula. The quantum circuits for the generalized measurement described by positive operator-valued measure (POVM), which is utilized to probabilistically distinguish the two non-orthogonal states, are explicitly constructed by means of quantum Toffoli gates. The efficient quantum circuits for implementing the teleportation are also provided.     

Quantum treatment of the time-dependent coupled oscillators under the action of a random force

In this communication we introduce the problem of time-dependent frequency converter under the action of external random force. We have assumed that the coupling parameter and the phase pump are explicitly time dependent. Using the equations of motion in the Heisenberg picture the dynamical operators are obtained, however, under a certain integrability condition. When the system is initially prepared in the even coherent states the squeezing phenomenon is discussed. The correlation function is also considered and it has been shown that the nonclassical properties are apparent and sensitive to any variation in the integrability parameter. Furthermore, the wave function in Schrödinger picture is calculated and used it to derive the wave function in the coherent states. The accurate definition of the creation and annihilation operators are also introduced and employed to diagonalize the Hamiltonian system.     

Quantifying the decay of quantum properties in single-mode states

The dissipative dynamics of Gaussian squeezed states (GSS) and coherent superposition states (CSS) are analytically obtained and compared. Time scales for sustaining different quantum properties such as squeezing, negativity of the Wigner function or photon number distribution are calculated. Some of these characteristic times also depend on initial conditions. For example, in the particular case of squeezing, we find that while the squeezing of CSS is only visible for small enough values of the field intensity, in GSS it is independent of this quantity, which may be experimentally advantageous. The asymptotic dynamics however is quite similar as revealed by the time evolution of the fidelity between states of the two classes.     

Newton-Leibniz integration for ket-bra operators in quantum mechanics (IV)—Integrations within Weyl ordered product of operators and their applications

We show that the technique of integration within normal ordering of operators [Hong-yi Fan, Hai-liang Lu, Yue Fan, Ann. Phys. 321 (2006) 480-494] applied to tackling Newton-Leibniz integration over ket-bra projection operators, can be generalized to the technique of integration within Weyl ordered product (IWWOP) of operators. The Weyl ordering symbol is introduced to find the Wigner operator’s Weyl ordering form Δ(p,q) =  δ(p − P)δ(q − Q) , and to find operators’ Weyl ordered expansion formula. A remarkable property is that Weyl ordering of operators is covariant under similarity transformation, so it has many applications in quantum statistics and signal analysis. Thus the invention of the IWWOP technique promotes the progress of Dirac’s symbolic method.     

Linear transformations of quantum states

This paper considers the most general linear transformation of a quantum state. We enumerate the conditions necessary to retain a physical interpretation of the transformed state: hermiticity, normalization and complete positivity. We show that these can be formulated in terms of an associated transformation introduced by Choi in 1975. We extend his treatment and display the mathematical argumentation in a manner closer to that used in traditional quantum physics. We contend that our approach displays the implications of the physical requirements in a simple and intuitive way. In addition, defining an arbitrary vector, we may derive a probability distribution over the spectrum of the associated transformation. This fixes the average of the eigenvalue independently of the vector chosen. The formal results are illustrated by a couple of examples.     

Classical and quantum pumping in closed systems

Pumping of charge (Q) in a closed ring geometry is not quantized even in the strict adiabatic limit. The deviation form exact quantization can be related to the Thouless conductance. We use the Kubo formalism as a starting point for the calculation of both the dissipative and the adiabatic contributions to Q. As an application we bring examples for classical dissipative pumping, classical adiabatic pumping, and in particular we make an explicit calculation for quantum pumping in case of the simplest pumping device, which is a three site lattice model. We make a connection with the popular S-matrix formalism which has been used to calculate pumping in open systems.     

Two-dimensional Schrödinger Hamiltonians with effective mass in SUSY approach

The general solution of SUSY intertwining relations of first order for two-dimensional Schrödinger operators with position-dependent (effective) mass is built in terms of four arbitrary functions. The procedure of separation of variables for the constructed potentials is demonstrated in general form. The generalization for intertwining of second order is also considered. The general solution for a particular form of intertwining operator is found, its properties—symmetry, irreducibility, and separation of variables—are investigated.     

Newton-Leibniz integration for ket-bra operators (II)—application in deriving density operator and generalized partition function formula

Via the route of applying Newton-Leibniz integration rule to Dirac’s symbolic operators, we show that the density operator e^−βH, where H is multi-mode quadratic interacting boson operators, is a mapping of symplectic transformation in the coherent state representation appearing in the form of non-symmetric ket-bra operator integration. By virtue of the technique of integration within an ordered product (IWOP) of operators, we deduce its normally ordered form which directly leads to the generalized partition function formula and the Wigner function. Some new representations, such as displacement-squeezing correlated squeezed coherent states, constructed by the IWOP technique, also bring convenience in deriving partition functions.     

First-order intertwining operators and position-dependent mass Schrödinger equations in d dimensions

The problem of d-dimensional Schrödinger equations with a position-dependent mass is analyzed in the framework of first-order intertwining operators. With the pair (H, H₁) of intertwined Hamiltonians one can associate another pair of second-order partial differential operators (R, R₁), related to the same intertwining operator and such that H (resp. H₁) commutes with R (resp. R₁). This property is interpreted in superalgebraic terms in the context of supersymmetric quantum mechanics (SUSYQM). In the two-dimensional case, a solution to the resulting system of partial differential equations is obtained and used to build a physically relevant model depicting a particle moving in a semi-infinite layer. Such a model is solved by employing either the commutativity of H with some second-order partial differential operator L and the resulting separability of the Schrödinger equation or that of H and R together with SUSYQM and shape-invariance techniques. The relation between both approaches is also studied.     

Scattering of spin-polarized electron in an Aharonov-Bohm potential

The scattering of spin-polarized electrons in an Aharonov-Bohm vector potential is considered. We solve the Pauli equation in 3 + 1 dimensions taking into account explicitly the interaction between the three-dimensional spin magnetic moment of electron and magnetic field. Expressions for the scattering amplitude and the cross section are obtained for spin-polarized electron scattered off a flux tube of small radius. It is also shown that bound electron states cannot occur in this quantum system. The scattering problem for the model of a flux tube of zero radius in the Born approximation is briefly discussed.     

Remote preparation of a class of three-qubit states

We propose a remote state preparation (RSP) scheme of a three-particle Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) class state by using three 2-qubit maximally entangled states as the quantum channel. The success probability of preparation and classical communication cost are calculated. Generally speaking, conditioned on Alice’s classical message, with probability 1/4 Bob can successfully prepare the original state by performing one appropriate unitary operation. However, for four kinds of special states, the success probability of preparation can be increased to 1/2 or even 1 after consuming some extra bits.     

Divergence-free WKB theory

We present a divergence-free WKB theory, which is a new semiclassical theory modified by nonperturbative quantum corrections. Conventionally, the WKB theory is constructed upon a trajectory that obeys the bare classical dynamics expressed by a quadratic equation in momentum space. Contrary to this, the divergence-free WKB theory is based on a higher-order algebraic equation in momentum space, which represents a dressed classical dynamics. More precisely, this higher-order algebraic equation is obtained by including quantum corrections to the quadratic equation, which is the bare classical limit. An additional solution of the higher-order algebraic equation enables us to construct a uniformly converging perturbative expansion of the wavefunction. Namely, our theory removes the notorious divergence of wavefunction at a turning point from the WKB theory. Moreover, our theory is able to produce wavefunctions and eigenenergies more accurate than those given by the traditional WKB method. In addition, the divergence-free WKB theory that is based on the cubic equation allows us to construct a uniformly valid wavefunction for the nonlinear Schrödinger equation (NLSE). A recent short letter [T. Hyouguchi, S. Adachi, M. Ueda, Phys. Rev. Lett. 88 (2002) 170404] is the opening of the divergence-free WKB theory. This paper presents full formalism of this theory and its several applications concerning wavefunction and eigenenergy to show that our theory is a natural extension of the traditional WKB theory that incorporates nonperturbative quantum corrections.     

Wavepacket dynamics, quantum reversibility, and random matrix theory

We introduce and analyze the physics of “driving reversal” experiments. These are prototype wavepacket dynamics scenarios probing quantum irreversibility. Unlike the mostly hypothetical “time reversal” concept, a “driving reversal” scenario can be realized in a laboratory experiment, and is relevant to the theory of quantum dissipation. We study both the energy spreading and the survival probability in such experiments. We also introduce and study the “compensation time” (time of maximum return) in such a scenario. Extensive effort is devoted to figuring out the capability of either linear response theory or random matrix theory (RMT) to describe specific features of the time evolution. We explain that RMT modeling leads to a strong non-perturbative response effect that differs from the semiclassical behavior.     

Hamiltonian quantum dynamics with separability constraints

Schroedinger equation on a Hilbert space H, represents a linear Hamiltonian dynamical system on the space of quantum pure states, the projective Hilbert space PH. Separable states of a bipartite quantum system form a special submanifold of PH. We analyze the Hamiltonian dynamics that corresponds to the quantum system constrained on the manifold of separable states, using as an important example the system of two interacting qubits. The constraints introduce nonlinearities which render the dynamics nontrivial. We show that the qualitative properties of the constrained dynamics clearly manifest the symmetry of the qubits system. In particular, if the quantum Hamilton’s operator has not enough symmetry, the constrained dynamics is nonintegrable, and displays the typical features of a Hamiltonian dynamical system with mixed phase space. Possible physical realizations of the separability constraints are discussed.     

Coherent states of the inverted Caldirola-Kanai oscillator with time-dependent singularities

The coherent states for a system of time-dependent singular potentials coupled to inverted CK (Caldirola-Kanai) oscillator are investigated by employing invariant operator method and Lie algebraic approach. We considered Coulomb potential and inverse quadratic potential as singularities of the system. The spectrum of quantum states is discrete for λ < 0 while continuous for λ ? 0. The probability densities for both Fock state and coherent state are converged to the center as time goes by according to the dissipation of energy. We confirmed that the probability density in the coherent state oscillates back and forth like a classical wave packet.