Quantum metrology is a promising practical use case for quantum technologies, where physical quantities can be measured with unprecedented precision. In lieu of quantum error correction procedures, near term quantum devices are expected to be noisy, and we have to make do with noisy probe states. We prove that, for a set of carefully chosen symmetric probe states that lie within certain quantum error correction codes, quantum metrology exhibits an advantage over classical metrology even after the probe states are corrupted by a constant number of erasure and dephasing errors. These probe states prove useful for robust metrology not only in the NISQ regime, but also in the asymptotic setting where they achieve Heisenberg scaling. This brings us closer towards making robust quantum metrology a technological reality.
We propose and analyze a new approach based on parity-time ($\mathcal{PT}$) symmetric microcavities with balanced gain and loss to enhance the performance of cavity-assisted metrology. We identify the conditions under which $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetric microcavities allow to improve sensitivity beyond what is achievable in loss-only systems. We discuss its application to the detection of mechanical motion, and show that the sensitivity is significantly enhanced in the vicinity of the transition point from unbroken- to broken-$\mathcal{PT}$ regimes. We believe that our results open a new direction …
To acquire the best path-entangled photon Fock states for robust quantum optical metrology with parity detection, we calculate phase information from a lossy interferometer by using twin entangled Fock states. We show that (a) when loss is less than 50% twin entangled Fock states with large photon number difference give higher visibility while when loss is higher than 50% the ones with less photon number difference give higher visibility; (b) twin entangled Fock states with large photon number difference give sub-shot-noise limit sensitivity for phase detection in a lossy environment. This res…
We propose a class of path-entangled photon Fock states for robust quantum optical metrology, imaging, and sensing in the presence of loss. We model propagation loss with beam-splitters and derive a reduced density matrix formalism from which we examine how photon loss affects coherence. It is shown that particular entangled number states, which contain a special superposition of photons in both arms of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, are resilient to environmental decoherence. We demonstrate an order of magnitude greater visibility with loss, than possible with N00N states. We also show that t…
We propose a metrology scheme that is made robust to a wide range of noise processes by using the passive, error-preventing properties of symmetry-protected topological phases. The so-called fractionalized edge mode of an antiferromagnetic Heisenberg spin-1 chain in a rotationally-symmetric Haldane phase can be used to measure the direction of an unknown electric field, by exploiting the way in which the field direction reduces the symmetry of the chain. Specifically, the direction of the field is registered in the holonomy under an adiabatic sensing protocol, and the degenerate fractionalized…
Useful quantum metrology requires nonclassical states with a high particle number and (close to) the optimal exploitation of the state's quantum correlations. Unfortunately, the single-particle detection resolution demanded by conventional protocols, such as spin squeezing via one-axis twisting, places severe limits on the particle number. Additionally, the challenge of finding optimal measurements (that saturate the quantum Cram{é}r-Rao bound) for an arbitrary nonclassical state limits most metrological protocols to only moderate levels of quantum enhancement. "Interaction-based readout" prot…
We investigate quantum metrology using a Lie algebraic approach for a class of Hamiltonians, including local and nearest-neighbor interaction Hamiltonians. Using this Lie algebraic formulation, we identify and construct highly symmetric states that admit Heisenberg scaling in precision in the absence of noise, and investigate their performance in the presence of noise. To this aim we perform a numerical scaling analysis, and derive upper bounds on the quantum Fisher information.
Quantum metrology uses small changes in the output probabilities of a quantum measurement to estimate the magnitude of a weak interaction with the system. The sensitivity of this procedure depends on the relation between the input state, the measurement results, and the generator observable describing the effect of the weak interaction on the system. This is similar to the situation in weak measurements, where the weak value of an observable exhibits a symmetric dependence on initial and final conditions. In this paper, it is shown that the phase sensitivity of a quantum measurement is in fact…
Robust cavity metrology beyond the limits of Pound-Drever-Hall
University of Maryland（马里兰大学）；Joint Quantum Institute, NIST/University of Maryland（NIST/马里兰大学联合量子研究所）；DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory（DEVCOM陆军研究实验室）；Maryland Quantum Materials Center（马里兰量子材料中心）
It has been proposed and demonstrated that path-entangled Fock states (PEFSs) are robust against photon loss over NOON states [S. D. Huver \emph{et al.}, Phys. Rev. A \textbf{78}, 063828 (2008)]. However, the demonstration was based on a measurement scheme which was yet to be implemented in experiments. In this work, we quantitatively illustrate the advantage of PEFSs over NOON states in the presence of photon losses by analytically calculating the quantum Fisher information. To realize such an advantage in practice, we then investigate the achievable sensitivities by employing three types of …
Quantum mechanics allows entanglement enhanced measurements to be performed, but loss remains an obstacle in constructing realistic quantum metrology schemes. However, recent work has revealed that entangled coherent states (ECSs) have the potential to perform robust sub-classical measurements [J. Joo et. al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 83601 (2011)]. Up to now no read out scheme has been devised which exploits this robust nature of ECSs, but we present here an experimentally accessible method of achieving precision close to the theoretical bound, even with loss. We show substantial improvements ov…
Quantum metrology exploits quantum resources and strategies to improve measurement precision of unknown parameters. One crucial issue is how to prepare a quantum entangled state suitable for high-precision measurement beyond the standard quantum limit. Here, we propose a scheme to find optimal pulse sequence to accelerate the one-axis twisting dynamics for entanglement generation with the aid of deep reinforcement learning (DRL). We consider the pulse train as a sequence of $π/2$ pulses along one axis or two orthogonal axes, and the operation is determined by maximizing the quantum Fisher info…
Quantum technologies exploit entanglement to enhance various tasks beyond their classical limits including computation, communication and measurements. Quantum metrology aims to increase the precision of a measured quantity that is estimated in the presence of statistical errors using entangled quantum states. We present a novel approach for finding (near) optimal states for metrology in the presence of noise, using variational techniques as a tool for efficiently searching the classically intractable high-dimensional space of quantum states. We comprehensively explore systems consisting of up…
By using highly entangled states, quantum metrology guarantees precision impossible with classical measurements. Unfortunately such states can be very susceptible to noise, and it is a great challenge of the field to maintain quantum advantage in realistic conditions. In this study we investigate the practicality of graph states for quantum metrology. Graph states are a natural resource for much of quantum information, and here we characterize their quantum Fisher information (QFI) for an arbitrary graph state. We then construct families of graph states which approximately achieves the Heisenb…
We examine quantum detection via a Michelson interferometer embedded in a gas with Kerr nonlinearity. This nonlinear interferometer is illuminated by pulses of classical light. This strategy combines the robustness against practical imperfections of classical light with the improvement provided by nonlinear processes. Regarding ultimate quantum limits, we stress that, as a difference with linear schemes, the nonlinearity introduces pulse duration as a new variable into play along with the energy resources.
We prove an extended convexity for quantum Fisher information of a mixed state with a given convex decomposition. This convexity introduces a bound which has two parts: i. classical part associated to the Fisher information of the probability distribution of the states contributing to the decomposition, and ii. quantum part given by the average quantum Fisher information of the states in this decomposition. Next we use a non-Hermitian extension of symmetric logarithmic derivative in order to obtain another upper bound on quantum Fisher information, which enables to derive a closed form for a f…
We introduce a new class of quantum many-particle entangled states, called the Dicke squeezed (or DS) states, which can be used to improve the precision in quantum metrology beyond the standard quantum limit. We show that the enhancement in measurement precision is characterized by a single experimentally detectable parameter, called the Dicke squeezing $ξ_{D}$, which also bounds the entanglement depth for this class of states. The measurement precision approaches the ultimate Heisenberg limit as $ξ_{D}$ attains the minimum in an ideal Dicke state. Compared with other entangled states, we show…
We propose and analyze a new time-domain method for subcycle metrology of quantum electric fields using a combination of a 3rd order nonlinear optical process and homodyne detection with a local oscillator (LO) field. The new method enables isolation of intrinsically weak quantum noise contribution by subtraction of the shot noise of the LO on a pulse-by-pulse basis. Together with the centro-symmetric character of the nonlinearity, our method unlocks novel opportunities toward terahertz and mid-infrared quantum field metrologies.
I consider the role of detection noise in quantum-enhanced metrology in collective spin systems, and derive a fundamental bound for the maximum obtainable sensitivity for a given level of added detection noise. I then present an interaction-based readout utilising the commonly used one-axis twisting scheme that approaches this bound for states generated via several commonly considered methods of generating quantum enhancement, such as one-axis twisting, two-axis counter-twisting, twist-and-turn squeezing, quantum non-demolition measurements, and adiabatically scanning through a quantum phase t…
Entangled photons can be used to make measurements with an accuracy beyond that possible with classical light. While most implementations of quantum metrology have used states made up of a single colour of photons, we show that entangled states of two colours can show supersensitivity to optical phase and path-length by using a photonic crystal fibre source of photon pairs inside an interferometer. This setup is relatively simple and robust to experimental imperfections. We demonstrate sensitivity beyond the standard quantum limit and show super-resolved interference fringes using entangled st…
The critical quantum metrology, which exploits the quantum phase transition for high precision measurement, has gained increasing attention recently. The critical quantum metrology with the continuous quantum phase transition, however, is experimentally very challenging since the continuous quantum phase transition only exists at the thermal dynamical limit. Here, we propose an adiabatic scheme on a perturbed Ising spin model with the first order quantum phase transition. By employing the Landau-Zener anticrossing, we can not only encode the unknown parameter in the ground state but also tune …
Finding optimal and noise robust probe states is a key problem in quantum metrology. In this paper we propose Markov dynamics as a possible mechanism for generating such states, and show how the Heisenberg scaling emerges for systems with multiple `dynamical phases' (stationary states), and noiseless channels. We model noisy channels by coupling the Markov output to `environment' ancillas, and consider the scenario where the environment is monitored to increase the quantum Fisher information of the output. In this setup we find that the survival of the Heisenberg limit depends on whether the e…
In this paper we present a search algorithm that finds useful optical quantum states which can be created with current technology. We apply the algorithm to the field of quantum metrology with the goal of finding states that can measure a phase shift to a high precision. Our algorithm efficiently produces a number of novel solutions: we find experimentally-ready schemes to produce states that show significant improvements over the state-of-the-art, and can measure with a precision that beats the shot noise limit by over a factor of 4. Furthermore, these states demonstrate a robustness to moder…
We propose a versatile Loschmidt echo protocol to detect and quantify multiparticle entanglement. It allows us to extract the quantum Fisher information for arbitrary pure states, and finds direct application in quantum metrology. In particular, the protocol applies to states that are generally difficult to characterize, as non-Gaussian states, and states that are not symmetric under particle exchange. We focus on atomic systems, including trapped ions, polar molecules, and Rydberg atoms, where entanglement is generated dynamically via long-range interaction, and show that the protocol is stab…
Quantum metrology promises high-precision measurements of classical parameters with far reaching implications for science and technology. So far, research has concentrated almost exclusively on quantum-enhancements in integrable systems, such as precessing spins or harmonic oscillators prepared in non-classical states. Here we show that large benefits can be drawn from rendering integrable quantum sensors chaotic, both in terms of achievable sensitivity as well as robustness to noise, while avoiding the challenge of preparing and protecting large-scale entanglement. We apply the method to spin…
In this article we derive a closed form expression for the symmetric logarithmic derivative of Fermionic Gaussian states. This provides a direct way of computing the quantum Fisher Information for Fermionic Gaussian states. Applications ranges from quantum Metrology with thermal states and non-equilibrium steady states with Fermionic many-body systems.
In Phys. Rev. Lett. 128, 200501 (2022) the authors consider the thermodynamic cost of quantum metrology. One of the main results is $\mathcal{S} \geq \log(2) \| h_λ\|^{-2} F_Q [ψ_λ]$, which purports to relate the Shannon entropy $\mathcal{S}$ of an optimal measurement (i.e., in the basis of the symmetric logarithmic derivative) to the quantum Fisher information $F_Q$ of the pure state $|ψ_λ\rangle$. However, we show that in the setting considered by the authors we have $\mathcal{S} = \log(2)$ and $\| h_λ\|^{2} = \max_{ψ_λ} F_Q[ψ_λ]$, so that their inequality reduces to the trivial inequality $…
We show that for some noisy channels, the optimal entanglement-assisted strategy depends on the noise level. We note that there is a non-trivial crossover between the parallel-entangled strategy and the ancilla-assisted strategy - in the former the probes are all entangled, the latter the probes are entangled with a noiseless ancilla but not amongst themselves. The transition can be explained by the fact that, separable states are more robust against noise and therefore are optimal in the high noise limit, but they are in turn outperformed by ancilla-assisted ones.
The Heisenberg limit is the superior precision available by entanglement sensors. However, entanglementis fragile against dephasing, and there is no known quantum metrology protocol that can achieve Heisenberg limited sensitivity with the presence of independent dephasing. Here, we show that the Heisenberg limit is attainable under the effect of independent dephasing under conditions where the probe qubits decohere due to both target fields and local environments. To detect the target fields, we exploit the entanglement properties to decay much faster than the classical states due to collectiv…
The goal of quantum metrology is the precise estimation of parameters using quantum properties such as entanglement. This estimation usually consists of three steps: state preparation, time evolution during which information of the parameters is encoded in the state, and readout of the state. Decoherence during the time evolution typically degrades the performance of quantum metrology and is considered to be one of the major obstacles to realizing entanglement-enhanced sensing. We show, however, that under suitable conditions, this decoherence can be exploited to improve the sensitivity. Assum…
A promising practical application of entanglement is metrology, where quantum states can be used to make measurements beyond the shot noise limit. Here we consider how metrology schemes could be realised using atomic Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) trapped in different potentials. In particular, we show that if a trapped BEC is rotated at just the right frequency, it can undergo a quantum phase transition characterised by large-scale entanglement spreading across the system. This simple process of stirring can generate interesting quantum states such as macroscopic superpositions of all the a…
Quantum metrology exploits quantum correlations to make precise measurements with limited particle numbers. By utilizing inter- and intra- mode correlations in an optical interferometer, we find a state that combines entanglement and squeezing to give a 7-fold enhancement in the quantum Fisher information (QFI) -- a metric related to the precision -- over the shot noise limit, for low photon numbers. Motivated by practicality we then look at the squeezed cat-state, which has recently been made experimentally, and shows further precision gains over the shot noise limit and a 3-fold improvement …
Photonic states with large and fixed photon numbers, such as Fock states, enable quantum-enhanced metrology but remain an experimentally elusive resource. A potentially simple, deterministic and scalable way to generate these states consists of fully exciting $N$ quantum emitters equally coupled to a common photonic reservoir, which leads to a collective decay known as Dicke superradiance. The emitted $N$-photon state turns out to be a highly entangled multimode state, and to characterise its metrological properties in this work we: (i) develop theoretical tools to compute the Quantum Fisher I…
In optical interferometry multi-mode entanglement is often assumed to be the driving force behind quantum enhanced measurements. Recent work has shown this assumption to be false: single mode quantum states perform just as well as their multi-mode entangled counterparts. We go beyond this to show that when photon losses occur - an inevitability in any realistic system - multi-mode entanglement is actually detrimental to obtaining quantum enhanced measurements. We specifically apply this idea to a superposition of coherent states, demonstrating that these states show a robustness to loss that a…
The maximally entangled states are excellent candidates for achieving Heisenberg-limited measurements in ideal quantum metrology, however, they are fragile against dissipation such as particle losses and their achievable precisions may become even worse than the standard quantum limit (SQL). Here we present a robust high-precision measurement scheme via spin cat states (a kind of non-Gaussian entangled states in superposition of two spin coherent states) in the presence of particle losses. The input spin cat states are of excellent robustness against particle losses and their achievable precis…
Analysis of Superradiance-Based Quantum Metrology under Independent Markovian Pure Dephasing
School of Fundamental Science and Technology, Keio University（庆应义塾大学基础理工学部）；Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Communication Engineering, Faculty of Advanced Science and Engineering, Chuo University（中央大学理工学府电气电子通信工程系）；Department of Physics, Simon Fraser University（西蒙菲莎大学物理系）；Center for Spintronics Research Network, Keio University（庆应义塾大学自旋电子学研究网络中心）
In quantum metrology schemes, one generally needs to prepare $m$ copies of $N$ entangled particles, such as entangled photon states, and then they are detected in a destructive process to estimate an unknown parameter. Here, we present a novel experimental scheme for estimating this parameter by using repeated indirect quantum nondemolition measurements in the setup called "photon box". This interaction-based scheme is able to achieve the phase sensitivity scaling as $1/N$ with a Fock state of $N$ photons. Moreover, we only need to prepare one initial $N$-photon state and it can be used repeti…
The diverging responses to parameter variations of systems at quantum critical points motivate schemes of quantum metrology that feature sub-Heisenberg scaling of the sensitivity with the system size (e.g., the number of particles). This sensitivity enhancement is fundamentally rooted in the formation of Schrödinger cat states, or macroscopic superposition states at the quantum critical points. The cat states, however, are fragile to decoherence caused by local noises on individual particles or coupling to local environments, since the local decoherence of any particle would cause the collapse…
We study how useful random states are for quantum metrology, i.e., surpass the classical limits imposed on precision in the canonical phase estimation scenario. First, we prove that random pure states drawn from the Hilbert space of distinguishable particles typically do not lead to super-classical scaling of precision even when allowing for local unitary optimization. Conversely, we show that random states from the symmetric subspace typically achieve the optimal Heisenberg scaling without the need for local unitary optimization. Surprisingly, the Heisenberg scaling is observed for states of …
Spin Grid States for Quantum Metrology in Atomic Clocks Limited by Spontaneous Emission
Leibniz Universität Hannover（汉诺威莱布尼茨大学）；University of Innsbruck（因斯布鲁克大学）；Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information of the Austrian Academy of Sciences（奥地利科学院量子光学与量子信息研究所）
