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arXiv:2012.15769 · Quantum

The group structure of dynamical transformations between quantum reference frames

Angel Ballesteros, Flaminia Giacomini, Giulia Gubitosi

Published Jun 8, 2021• 39 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Recently, it was shown that when reference frames are associated to quantum systems, the transformation laws between such quantum reference frames need to be modified to take into account the quantum and dynamical features of the reference frames. This led to a relational description of the phase space variables of the quantum system of which the quantum reference frames are part of. While such transformations were shown to be symmetries of the system's Hamiltonian, the question remained unanswered as to whether they enjoy a group structure, similar to that of the Galilei group relating classical reference frames in quantum mechanics. In this work, we identify the canonical transformations on the phase space of the quantum systems comprising the quantum reference frames, and show that these transformations close a group structure defined by a Lie algebra, which is different from the usual Galilei algebra of quantum mechanics. We further find that the elements of this new algebra are in fact the building blocks of the quantum reference frames transformations previously identified, which we recover. Finally, we show how the transformations between classical reference frames described by the standard Galilei group symmetries can be obtained from the group of transformations between quantum reference frames by taking the zero limit of the parameter that governs the additional noncommutativity introduced by the quantum nature of inertial transformations.

DOI
10.22331/q-2021-06-08-470

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Recently, it was shown that when reference frames are associated to quantum systems, the transformation laws between such quantum reference frames need to be modified to take into account the quantum and dynamical features of the reference frames. This led to a relational description of the phase space variables of the quantum system of which the quantum reference frames are part of. While such transformations were shown to be symmetries of the system's Hamiltonian, the question remained unanswered as to whether they enjoy a group structure, similar to that of the Galilei group relating classical reference frames in quantum mechanics. In this work, we identify the canonical transformations on the phase space of the quantum systems comprising the quantum reference frames, and show that these transformations close a group structure defined by a Lie algebra, which is different from the usual Galilei algebra of quantum mechanics. We further find that the elements of this new algebra are in fact the building blocks of the quantum reference frames transformations previously identified, which we recover. Finally, we show how the transformations between classical reference frames described by the standard Galilei group symmetries can be obtained from the group of transformations between quantum reference frames by taking the zero limit of the parameter that governs the additional noncommutativity introduced by the quantum nature of inertial transformations.
Quantum groups have been widely explored as a tool to encode possible nontrivial generalisations of reference frame transformations, relevant in quantum gravity. In quantum information, it was found that the reference frames can be associated to quantum particles, leading to quantum reference frames transformations. The connection between these two frameworks is still unexplored, but if clarified it will lead to a more profound understanding of symmetries in quantum mechanics and quantum gravity. Here, we establish a correspondence between quantum reference frame transformations and transformations generated by a quantum deformation of the Galilei group with commutative time, taken at first order in the quantum deformation parameter. This is found once the quantum group noncommutative transformation parameters are represented on the phase space of a quantum particle, and upon setting the quantum deformation parameter to be proportional to the inverse of the mass of the particle serving as the quantum reference frame. These results allow us to show that quantum reference frame transformations are physically relevant when the state of the quantum reference frame is in a quantum superposition of semiclassical states. We conjecture that the all-order quantum Galilei group describes quantum reference frame transformations between more general quantum states of the quantum reference frame.
Recently there has been much effort in developing a quantum generalisation of reference frame transformations. Despite important progress, a complete understanding of their principles is still lacking. Here we derive quantum reference frame transformations for a broad range of symmetry groups from first principles, using only standard quantum theory. Our framework, naturally based on incoherent rather than coherent group averaging, yields reversible transformations that only depend on the reference frames and system of interest. We find more general transformations than those studied so far, which are valid only in a restricted subspace. Our framework contains additional degrees of freedom in the form of an "extra particle", which carries information about the quantum features of reference frame states. We study the centrally extended Galilei group specifically, highlighting key differences from previous proposals.
Recently there has been much effort in developing a quantum generalisation of reference frame transformations. Despite important progress, a complete understanding of their principles is still lacking. In particular, we argue that previous proposals could yield reversible transformations between arbitrary quantum reference frames only when applied to the whole universe. In contrast, here we derive quantum reference frame transformations from first principles, using only standard quantum theory. Our framework, naturally based on incoherent rather than coherent group averaging, yields reversible transformations that only depend on the reference frames and system of interest. We find more general transformations than those studied so far, which are valid only in a restricted subspace. Importantly, our framework contains additional degrees of freedom in the form of an "extra particle," which carries information about the quantum features of reference frame states. Our formalism is valid for a broad range of symmetry groups. We study the centrally extended Galilei group specifically, highlighting key differences from previous proposals.
The concept of a reference frame has been a part of the physical formalism since the early days of physics. The reference frame was always understood as a physical system with respect to which states of other physical systems are described. With the adoption of quantum theory, our understanding of physical systems has fundamentally changed, yet we still rely on classical systems for the definition of reference frames. If we acknowledge the fact that all systems are quantum mechanical, including reference frames, then we have to be able to describe quantum systems relative to other quantum systems. \n \nIn this thesis we develop a framework for integrating quantum reference frames into the formalism of quantum mechanics. We show how the description of states and measurements has to be refined in order to account for the quantum nature of the reference frame. Initially, we study the implications of the new description with a quantum reference frame associated with a generic compact group. Then, we apply the same approach to the study of relativistic quantum reference frames associated with the Poincaré group, which is not compact. \n \nOur findings for the generic compact group include an analysis of how well a quantum system defines a frame of reference for other systems. Also in the generic case we analyze the effects of a measurement on a quantum reference frame. In the relativistic case we first find how the massive representations of the Poincaré group decompose into irreducible representations. This is a key problem in the analysis of quantum reference frames. Finally, we analyze a relativistic quantum reference frame that is used for measuring the total momentum. We will show how the relativistic measurements of total momentum should be described with respect to a quantum reference frame. We will also show how these measurements affect the quantum reference frame.
In this paper, we discuss the concept of transformations among reference frames (classical or quantum). Usually transformations among classical reference frames have sharply defined parameters; geometrically they can be considered as pure states in the parameters’ space, and they form a group. It is however possible that the distributions in the parameters’ space are mixed states; such states form a semigroup. Similarly, transformations among quantum reference frames can be either pure or mixed. This gives rise to interesting consequences: the state of a system can be pure with respect to a reference frame and mixed with respect to another; we concretely discuss this in the framework of Galilei transformations in 1+1 dimensions. In particular, if the state of a reference frame with respect to another frame is thermal at some temperature, a quantum particle in the pure (improper) rest state with respect to the first frame will appear in a thermal state with a related nonzero temperature with respect to the other. This can also be discussed in relation to the time/energy uncertainty relation.
Mathjax On | Off Abstract In the preceding chapter, we showed how one-particle quantum states can be obtained from unitary irreducible representations of the Galilei group, the transformation group of Newton relativity. Since the Galilei group defines transformations amongst inertial reference frames, this description of one-particle quantum states is limited to inertial observers. In particular, observers who are accelerating are excluded in this description. This motivates the question of whether it is possible to provide a description of one-particle quantum states that holds for non-inertial observers by expanding the notion of Newton relativity to include non-inertial reference frames.