Localization of a macroscopic object induced by the factorization of internal adiabatic motion

To account for the phenomenon of quantum decoherence of a macroscopic object, such as the localization and disappearance of interference, we invoke the adiabatic quantum entanglement between its collective states (such as that of the center-of-mass (CM)) and its inner states based on our recent investigation. Under the adiabatic limit where motion of the CM does not excite the transition of inner states, it is shown that the wave function of the macroscopic object can be written as an entangled state with correlation between adiabatic inner states and quasi-classical motion configurations of the CM. Since the adiabatic inner states are factorized with respect to each component of the macroscopic object, this adiabatic separation can induce the quantum decoherence. This observation thus provides us with a possible solution to the Schr?dinger cat paradox. Received 24 October 2000 and Received in final form 8 March 2001     

Decoherence of macroscopic objects from relativistic effect

We study how the decoherence of macroscopic objects originates intrinsically from the relativistic effect. With the degree of freedom of the center of mass(CM) characterizing the collective quantum state of a macroscopic object(MO),it is found that an MO consisting of N particles can decohere with a time scale of no more than p (N~(1/2))~-1. Here, the special relativity can induce the coupling of the collective motion mode and the relative motion modes in an order of 1/c~2, which intrinsically results in the above minimum decoherence.     

HYPER and Gravitational Decoherence

We study the decoherence process associated with the scattering of stochastic backgrounds of gravitational waves. We show that it has a negligible influence on HYPER-like atomic interferometers although it may dominate decoherence of macroscopic motions, such as the planetary motion of the Moon around the Earth.     

Towards quantum superpositions of a mirror: an exact open systems analysis

We analyze the recently proposed mirror superposition experiment of Marshall, Simon, Penrose, and Bouwmeester, assuming that the mirror's dynamics contains a nonunitary term of the Lindblad-type proportional to -[q,[q,rho]], with q the position operator for the center of mass of the mirror, and rho the statistical operator. We derive an exact formula for the fringe visibility for this system. We discuss the consequences of our result for tests of environmental decoherence and of collapse models. In particular, we find that with the conventional parameters for the continuous spontaneous localization model of state vector collapse, maintenance of coherence is expected to within an accuracy of at least 1 part in 10(8). Increasing the apparatus coupling to environmental decoherence may lead to observable modifications of the fringe visibility, with time dependence given by our exact result.     

Spontaneous decoherence of coupled harmonic oscillators confined in a ring

We study the spontaneous decoherence of coupled harmonic oscillators confined in a ring container, where the nearest-neighbor harmonic potentials are taken into consideration. Without any external symmetry-breaking field or surrounding environment, the quantum superposition state prepared in the relative degrees of freedom gradually loses its quantum coherence spontaneously. This spontaneous decoherence is interpreted by the gauge couplings between the center-of-mass and the relative degrees of freedoms, which actually originate from the symmetries of the ring geometry and the corresponding nontrivial boundary conditions. In particular, such spontaneous decoherence does not occur at all at the thermodynamic limit because the nontrivial boundary conditions become the trivial Born-von Karman boundary conditions when the perimeter of the ring container tends to infinity. Our investigation shows that a thermal macroscopic object with certain symmetries has a chance for its quantum properties to degrade even without applying an external symmetry-breaking field or surrounding environment.     

On the Decoherence of Macroscopic Bodies

We consider the field, either gravitational or electric, associated to a macroscopic source. Tracing over the field's degrees of freedom we show that the reduced density matrix diagonalizes on the position basis for macroscopic separations. The non diagonal reduced density matrix elements are quenched by a factor which is independent of the body being at rest or in motion. This may provide an explanation of the classical behavior of everyday objects not dissimilar to the one based on decoherence by environment. We discuss a few examples which indicate that the electric field even in the case of a totally neutral body is more effective, through a dipole contribution, than the gravitational field.     

Particle tracks and the mechanism of decoherence in a model bubble chamber

We put forward a toy model for a “bubble chamber” and study its interaction with an incoming object particle. We discuss the notion of particle “tracks” inside the bubble chamber and analyze the mechanisms that provoke a loss of quantum mechanical coherence (decoherence). The model is solvable and provides interesting insights into some of the most salient features of the interaction between a microscopic particle and a macroscopic device.     

Entanglement of macroscopic test masses and the standard quantum limit in laser interferometry

We show that the generation of entanglement of two heavily macroscopic mirrors is feasible with state of the art techniques of high-precision laser interferometry. The basis of such a demonstration would be a Michelson interferometer with suspended mirrors and simultaneous homodyne detections at both interferometer output ports. We present the connection between the generation of entanglement and the standard quantum limit (SQL) for a free mass. The SQL is a well-known reference limit in operating interferometers for gravitational-wave detection and provides a measure of when macroscopic entanglement can be observed in the presence of realistic decoherence processes.     

Localization under the effect of randomly distributed decoherence

Electron transport through disordered quasi one-dimensional quantum systems is studied. Decoherence is taken into account by a spatial distribution of virtual reservoirs, which represent local interactions of the conduction electrons with their environment. We show that the decoherence distribution has observable effects on the transport. If the decoherence reservoirs are distributed randomly without spatial correlations, a minimal degree of decoherence is necessary to obtain Ohmic conduction. Below this threshold the system is localized and thus, a decoherence driven metal-insulator transition is found. In contrast, for homogenously distributed decoherence, any finite degree of decoherence is sufficient to destroy localization. Thus, the presence or absence of localization in a disordered one-dimensional system may give important insight about how the electron phase is randomized.     

Quantum entanglement in an oscillating macroscopic mirror

In this paper, we revisit the problem of quantum entanglement in an oscillating macroscopic mirror previously studied by Marshall et al. consisting of a modified Michelson interferometer where one of the mirrors is free to oscillate about its center of mass. A photon incident upon the oscillating mirror becomes entangled with the mirror, driving the mirror into a superposition of quantum states. Once the photon and mirror decouple, the mirror returns to its initial state. The purpose of our investigations was to optimize the parameter regime, taking into consideration the current state of technology and the demands imposed by the need to maintain a stable environment in the presence of thermal noise. Optimization should not demand ultra-low temperatures and this is reflected in our results. Our results also show that if the separation between states is maintained at 10^-14 m, the mirror size is reduced, making it easier to induce superposition in the mirror. The critical nature of mirror reflectivity and its connection to cavity decay rate was also revealed by our investigations. The results obtained through our investigations could be useful in quantum error correction, where decoherence negatively affects the results of computations performed by quantum computers. Finally, we note that we are only concerned with an isolated system, where no losses to the external environment occur and any decoherence that occurs within the system remains internal to the system; that is, any mention of decoherence refers specifically to recoverable decoherence.     

A Quantum Dynamical Mode for the Control of Decoherence

We present a quantum measurement model where the meter is taken to be a squeezed reservoir. We realize decoherence in macroscopic limits using Bogoliubov transformation, and this kind of system-meter coupling has a dramatic influence on decoherence.     

Bose-Einstein condensates beyond mean field theory: quantum backreaction as decoherence

We propose an experiment to measure the slow log(N) convergence to mean field theory (MFT) around a dynamical instability. Using a density matrix formalism instead of the standard macroscopic wave function approach, we derive equations of motion which go beyond MFT and provide accurate predictions for the quantum break time. The leading quantum corrections appear as decoherence of the reduced single-particle quantum state.     

Preparation of Macroscopic Entangled Coherent States in Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers Ensembles Coupled to a Superconducting Flux Qubit

We propose a potentially practical scheme for creating macroscopic entangled coherent state between two separate nitrogen-vacancy center spin ensembles placed near a superconducting flux qubit. Through the collective magnetic coupling and the in situ tunability of the flux qubit, the arbitrary entangled coherent states of spin ensembles can be achieved with high success possibilities under the influence from decoherence of the flux qubit and spin ensembles.The experimental feasibility and challenge are justified using currently available technology.     

Considerations on localization of macroscopic bodies

Position holds a very special role in understanding the classical behaviour of macroscopic bodies on the basis of quantum principles. This leads us to examine the localised states of a large condensed object in the context of a realistic model. Following the argument that an isolated macroscopic body is usually described by a linear superposition of low-lying energy eigenstates, it has been found that localised states of this type correspond to a nearly minimum-uncertainty state for the center of mass. An indication is also given of the dependence of the center of mass position spread on the number of constituent particles. This paper is not offered as an answer to the intriguing question of the preferred role played by the position basis, but will hopefully provide some contribution to the quantum modelling of multiparticle systems.     

Dynamics of a Moving Two-Level Atom Under the Influence of Intrinsic Decoherence

We present a general and fascinating problem of quantum entanglement (QE) that is calculated with the help of quantum Fisher information (QFI) and von Neumann entropy (VNE) for moving two-level atomic systems. We calculate numerically the temporal evolution of the state vector of the entire system under the influence of intrinsic decoherence for a moving two-level atom. We demonstrate that the phase shifts of an estimator parameter, intrinsic decoherence, and the atomic motion play an important and prominent role during the time evolution of the atomic system. We observe that there is a monotonic relation between the atomic quantum Fisher information (QFI) and quantum entanglement (QE) in the absence of atomic motion. We also show that at the revival time the local maximum values of QFI decreases gradually. A periodic behavior of QFI is observed in the presence of atomic motion, which becomes more important and remarkable for two-level atomic systems. Moreover, the atomic quantum Fisher information and entanglement demonstrate an opposite response during the time evolution in the presence of atomic motion. We show that the evolution of entanglement is more susceptible to the intrinsic decoherence; a considerable change occurs in the degree of entanglement when the intrinsic decoherence parameter increases. Intrinsic decoherence in the atom–field interaction represses the nonclassical effects of the atomic systems. Both the entanglement and the quantum Fisher information saturate to their lower levels for longer time scales in the presence of intrinsic decoherence. For larger values of intrinsic decoherence, the sudden death of entanglement is observed.     

如何实现宏观量子单摆

利用等效质心方法描写单摆运动,经典力学通过牛顿方程得到摆球在空间做周期振动,而量子力学却给出完全不同的结论:摆球做无"周期"的随机运动.本文分析了量子力学等效质心模型成立的条件,在此基础上计算了经典单摆过渡至量子单摆的实验条件,表明在目前的实验水平上观察宏观摆球(微米量级)的空间量子跃迁行为是简便易行的.     

Mean-Field Dynamics of a Two-Mode Bose-Einstein Condensate Subject to Decoherence

We discuss the dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates in a double-well potential subject to decoherenee （or particle loss）. Starting from the full many-body dynamics described by the master equation, an effective Gross- Pitaevskii-like equation is derived in the mean-field approximation. By numerically solving the GP equation, we find that macroscopic quantum self-trapping disappears for strong decoherence, while generalized self-trapping occurs under weak decoherence. The fixed points have been calculated, and we find that an abrupt change from elliptic to an attractor and a repeller occurs, reflecting the metastable behavior of the system around these points.     

Influences of decoherence on the generation of a macroscopic superposition state using weak cross-Kerr effect

Considering a system in which a single photon and a coherent field propagate through a Kerr medium, when the weak cross-Kerr interaction between the coherent state and the single photon under decoherence is involved, this paper derives analytically a macroscopic superposition state by the superoperator method and investigates the influences of decoherence on the coherence properties of the obtained state. It finds that the macroscopic superposition state will experience evolution from a pure superposltion state to a mixed state in a dissipative environment and the Kerr effect makes the field display a periodic revival from decoherence for a short time.     

Influences of decoherence on the generation of a macroscopic superposition state using weak cross-Kerr effect

Considering a system in which a single photon and a coherent field propagate through a Kerr medium, when the weak cross-Kerr interaction between the coherent state and the single photon under decoherence is involved, this paper derives analytically a macroscopic superposition state by the superoperator method and investigates the influences of decoherence on the coherence properties of the obtained state. It finds that the macroscopic superposition state will experience evolution from a pure superposition state to a mixed state in a dissipative environment and the Kerr effect makes the field display a periodic revival from decoherence for a short time.     

Decoherence Within a Simple Model for the Environment

This article examines the decoherence of a macroscopic body using a simple model of the environment and following the evolution of the pure state for the whole system. We found that decoherence occurs for very general initial conditions and were able to confirm a number of widely accepted features of the process.