Superposition states at finite temperature

Huyet, G., Franke-Arnold, S. and Barnett, S.M. (2001) Superposition states at finite temperature. Physical Review A: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics, 63(4), 043812. (doi: 10.1103/PhysRevA.63.043812)

Abstract

We describe a method to create superposition states from a mixed state of a harmonic oscillator. If the initial state is described by a thermal state, then the resulting superposition state will be a “hot” superposition state. Such a state can be distinguished from a statistical mixture by its coherence properties. Here we suggest how to demonstrate the coherence of the superposition state by observing interference fringes when the two parts of the wave packet are overlapped. In the case of the mixed superposition state, a partial overlap may not be sufficient to observe the presence of fringes. We introduce therefore the idea of a coherence length for the wave packet and demonstrate its relevance for interferometry of mixed states. We illustrate our ideas with the example of superposition states for the motion of a single trapped ion.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Franke-Arnold, Professor Sonja
• Authors: Huyet, G., Franke-Arnold, S., and Barnett, S.M.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy
• Journal Name: Physical Review A: Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics
• Publisher: American Physical Society
• ISSN: 1050-2947
• ISSN (Online): 1094-1622