Quantum optical tests of complementarity: Quantum eraser and the decoherence time of a local measurement process.
Item
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Title
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Quantum optical tests of complementarity: Quantum eraser and the decoherence time of a local measurement process.
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Identifier
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AAI9924794
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identifier
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9924794
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Creator
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Abranyos, Yonatan.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Janos A. Bergou
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Date
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1999
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Physics, Atomic | Physics, Optics
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Abstract
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Quantum optical tests of the fundamental principles of quantum mechanics, in particular, complementarity, entanglement and non-locality, are the central themes of this dissertation. A which-path experiment is implemented based on a recent experiment by Eichmann et al. [1] involving two four-level atoms. In the version considered here a continuous Broad Band Excitation field drives the two trapped atoms and, depending on the type of scattering, information about which atom scattered the light is stored in the internal degrees of the atoms. Entanglement of the atoms-photon system is intimately connected to the availability of "which way" information. The quantum eraser disentangles the atoms-photon system and consequently "which way" information is lost leading to interference. Two different experimental schemes based on the Eichmann et al. experiment are proposed for the implementation of the quantum eraser. The quantum eraser schemes erase the "which way" information and interference is observed in the second order correlation function. With a slight modification of the experiment, a scheme that allows to verify recently derived inequalities by Englert [2] in connection with distinguishability and visibility in a two-way interferometer is proposed. These inequalities, in some sense, can be regarded as quantifying the notion of wave-particle duality. The visibility of interference depends on the detected polarization direction of the scattered light, and a reading out of the internal atomic states of one of the two atoms provides for partial "which way" information or distinguishability of the two different paths. Finally, the quantum eraser is used to measure the decoherence time of a local measurement process. The experiment proposed is similar to the quantum eraser setup and contains the complete measurement process of system-meter-environment interaction. The decoherence time is quantitatively expressed in the amount of reduction of the visibility in the second order correlation function. In addition, it explores how we can cast the question of quantum coherence of mesoscopic or macroscopic systems with a quantum eraser or in general interference experiments.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
