In Quantum Optics, the widely accepted definition of nonclassicality is based on the P function of Glauber and Sudarshan. When it fails to be interpreted as a classical probability density, the corresponding quantum state is said to be a nonclassical one. Here we present the first reconstruction of a nonclassical P function of a single-photon added thermal state. We also consider the nonclassical properties of general spacegtime dependent correlation functions of radiation fields. For the detection of these correlation functions, a balanced homodyne correlation technique was proposed. It is shown that the measurable correlation functions also allow one to completely characterize bipartite entangled quantum states with a negative partial transposition. Finally, we present a method for identifying general bipartite entanglement for continuous variables.
We theoretically propose and experimentally demonstrate a nonclassicality test of a single-mode field in phase space, which has an analogy with the nonlocality test proposed by Banaszek and Wódkiewicz [Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 2009 (1999)]. Our approach to deriving the classical bound draws on the fact that the Wigner function of a coherent state is a product of two independent distributions as if the orthogonal quadratures (position and momentum) in phase space behave as local realistic variables. Our method detects every pure nonclassical Gaussian state, which can also be extended to mixed states. Furthermore, it sets a bound for all Gaussian states and their mixtures, thereby providing a criterion to detect a genuine quantum non-Gaussian state. Remarkably, our phase-space approach with invariance under Gaussian unitary operations leads to an optimized test for a given non-Gaussian state. We experimentally show how this enhanced method can manifest quantum non-Gaussianity of a state by simply choosing phase-space points appropriately, which is essentially equivalent to implementing a squeezing operation on a given state.
The definition of nonclassical states in quantum optics by the nonpositivity of their Glauber–Sudarshan quasiprobability is investigated and it is shown that it hides some serious problems. It leads to a subdivision of squeezed thermal states into classical and nonclassical states which is difficult to interpret physically by some qualitatively different behaviour of the states. Nonclassical states are found in arbitrarily small neighbourhoods of every classical state that is illustrated by a very artificial modified thermal state. The observability of the criterion in comparison to that for nonclassicality of states determined by the nearest Hilbert–Schmidt distance to a class of reference states is discussed. The behaviour of the nonclassicality of states in models of phase-insensitive processes of damping and amplification is investigated and it is found that every nonclassical state eventually makes a transition to a classical state. However, this is not specific for the negativities or singularities of the Glauber–Sudarshan quasiprobability and is found in similar form for other quasiprobabilities, for example, for the Wigner quasiprobability. We discuss in quite general form some defects of the Glauber–Sudarshan quasiprobability if compared with classical distribution functions over the phase space, in particular the failure of an earlier advertised superposition formula.
If the phase space-based Glauber-Sudarshan distribution,
Pϱ, has negative values the quantum state,
ϱ, it describes is nonclassical. Due to
P's singular behavior, this simple criterion is impractical to use. Recent work has presented a general, sensitive, and noise-tolerant certification functional for the detection of nonclassical behavior of quantum states
ϱ. There, it was shown that when this functional takes on negative values somewhere in phase space,
ξP(x,p)<0, this is sufficient to certify the nonclassicality of a state. Here we give examples where this certification fails. We investigate states which are known to be nonclassical but the certification function is nonnegative,
ξP(x,p)≥0, everywhere in phase space. We generalize
ξ, giving it an appealing form,
S, which allows for slight improvements in certification, but
S also fails for mixed very weakly nonclassical states. More important than a slight improvement in sensitivity of
S over
ξ is that we showed how very sensitive
ξ and
S are, and more important still is our simple derivation of
S allowing us to generalize
ξ and
S to multiple modes.
Nonclassicality and entanglement are notions fundamental to quantum-information processes involving continuous variable systems. That these two notions are intimately related has been intuitively appreciated for quite some time. An aspect of considerable interest is the behavior of these attributes of a state under the action of a noisy channel. Inspired by the notion of entanglement-breaking channels, we define the concept of nonclassicality-breaking channels in a natural manner. We show that the notion of nonclassicality breaking is essentially equivalent---in a clearly defined sense of the term ``essentially''---to the notion of entanglement breaking, as far as bosonic Gaussian channels are concerned. This is notwithstanding the fact that the very notion of entanglement breaking requires reference to a bipartite system, whereas the definition of nonclassicality breaking makes no such reference. Our analysis rests on our classification of channels into nonclassicality-based, as against entanglement-based, types of canonical forms. Our result takes ones intuitive understanding of the close relationship between nonclassicality and entanglement a step closer.