Invariance under Lorentz transformations is fundamental to both the standard model and general relativity. Testing Lorentz-symmetry violation (LSV) via atomic systems attracts extensive interests in both theory and experiment. In several test proposals, the LSV violation effects are described as a local interaction and the corresponding test precision can asymptotically reach the Heisenberg limit via increasing quantum Fisher information (QFI), but the limited resolution of collective observables prevents the detection of large QFI. Here, we propose a multimode many-body quantum interferometry for testing the LSV parameter κ via an ensemble of spinor atoms. By employing an N -atom multimode GHZ state, the test precision can attain the Heisenberg limit Δκ∝1/(F2N) with the spin length F and the atom number N . We find a realistic observable (i.e. practical measurement process) to achieve the ultimate precision and analyze the LSV test via an experimentally accessible three-mode interferometry with Bose condensed spin- 1 atoms for example. By selecting suitable input states and unitary recombination operation, the LSV parameter κ can be extracted via realizable population measurement. Especially, the measurement precision of the LSV parameter κ can beat the standard quantum limit and even approach the Heisenberg limit via spin mixing dynamics or driving through quantum phase transitions. Moreover, the scheme is robust against nonadiabatic effect and detection noise. Our test scheme may open up a feasible way for a drastic improvement of the LSV tests with atomic systems and provide an alternative application of multi-particle entangled states.
Invariance under Lorentz transformations is fundamental to both the standard model and general relativity. Testing Lorentz-symmetry violation (LSV) via atomic systems attracts extensive interests in both theory and experiment. In several test proposals, the LSV violation effects are described as a local interaction and the corresponding test precision can asymptotically reach the Heisenberg limit via increasing quantum Fisher information (QFI), but the limited resolution of collective observables prevents the detection of large QFI. Here, we propose a multimode many-body quantum interferometry for testing the LSV parameter κ via an ensemble of spinor atoms. By employing an N -atom multimode GHZ state, the test precision can attain the Heisenberg limit Δκ∝1/(F2N) with the spin length F and the atom number N . We find a realistic observable (i.e. practical measurement process) to achieve the ultimate precision and analyze the LSV test via an experimentally accessible three-mode interferometry with Bose condensed spin- 1 atoms for example. By selecting suitable input states and unitary recombination operation, the LSV parameter κ can be extracted via realizable population measurement. Especially, the measurement precision of the LSV parameter κ can beat the standard quantum limit and even approach the Heisenberg limit via spin mixing dynamics or driving through quantum phase transitions. Moreover, the scheme is robust against nonadiabatic effect and detection noise. Our test scheme may open up a feasible way for a drastic improvement of the LSV tests with atomic systems and provide an alternative application of multi-particle entangled states.
A recent proposal for testing Lorentz-symmetry violation (LSV) presents a formulation where the effect of violation is described as a local interaction [R. Shaniv et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 103202 (2018)]. An entangled ion pair in a decoherence free subspace (DFS) is shown to double the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of one ion, while (even)-N/2 such DFS pairs in a collective entangled state improve SNR by N times, provided the state parity or the even or odd numbers of ions can be measured. It remains to find out, however, how such fiducial entangled states can be prepared at nonexponentially small success rates. This work suggests two types of many-particle entangled states for testing LSV: the maximally entangled NOON state, which can achieve Heisenberg limited precision; and the balanced spin-1 Dicke state, which is readily available in deterministic fashion. We show that the latter also lives in a DFS and is immune to stray magnetic fields. It can achieve classical precision limit or the standard quantum limit (SQL) based on collective population measurement without individual atom resolution. Given the high interests in LSV and in entanglement assisted quantum metrology, our observation offers additional incentives for pursuing practical applications of many-atom entangled states.
Multiparameter estimation, which aims to simultaneously determine multiple parameters in the same measurement procedure, attracts extensive interest in measurement science and technologies. Here, we propose a multimode many-body quantum interferometry for simultaneously estimating linear and quadratic Zeeman coefficients via an ensemble of spinor atoms. Different from the scheme with individual atoms, by using a N-atom multimode Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state, the measurement precisions of the two parameters can simultaneously attain the Heisenberg scaling, and they respectively depend on the hyperfine spin number F in the forms of $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}p\ensuremath{\propto}1/(FN)$ and $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}q\ensuremath{\propto}1/({F}^{2}N)$. Moreover, the simultaneous estimation can provide better precision than the individual estimation. Further, by taking a three-mode interferometry with Bose-condensed spin-1 atoms for an example, we show how to perform the simultaneous estimation of p and q. Our scheme provides a novel paradigm for implementing multiparameter estimation with multimode quantum-correlated states.
Entanglement lies at the core of emergent quantum technologies such as quantum-enhanced metrology, quantum communication and cryptography, and quantum simulation and computing. Spinor Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) offer a promising platform for the generation and application of entangled states. For example, a spin-1 BEC has served for the proof-of-principle demonstration of a quantum-enhanced atomic clock. Ferromagnetic spin-1 BECs with zero magnetization exhibit three ground-state quantum phases with different entanglement properties. The control parameter can be tuned by a magnetic field or by microwave dressing. As already experimentally demonstrated, an entangled ground state can be reached from a well accessible, non-entangled one by driving the control parameter across quantum phase transitions (QPTs). We investigate which of the entangled ground states afford quantum-enhanced interferometry. The interferometric usefulness is quantified by the quantum Fisher information (QFI), which we analyze throughout all ground-state phases. A large QFI at about half the Heisenberg limit, and thus far above the standard quantum limit, is attained by the well-known Twin-Fock state and by the central broken-axisymmetry (CBA) state. We detail how the CBA state can be used as a probe for quantum-enhanced interferometry. Furthermore, we observe that the large QFI of the CBA state can be traced back to enclosed macroscopic superposition states (MSSs). Measuring the atom number in one out of three modes generates, with high probability and heralded by the measurement outcome, a MSS similar to a NOON state. Our proposal promises NOON-like MSSs of unprecedentedly many atoms. Both proposed applications of the adiabatically prepared CBA state depend only on existent technology. Our numerical results show that they tolerate a reasonably swift quasiadiabatic passage in the presence of atom loss as well as uncertainties of atom counting. Excited-state quantum phase transitions (ESQPTs) extend the concept of QPTs beyond the ground state. While they have been extensively investigated theoretically, there are only few experimental results. From the perspective of quantum-state engineering, it is furthermore surprising how rarely order parameters of ESQPTs are discussed in the literature. Mean-field models for spinor BECs imply ESQPTs, to which some experimental observations on the mean-field dynamics can be attributed. However, so far, neither theoretical nor experimental studies have specifically addressed ESQPTs in spinor BECs. We extend the ground-state phase diagram of ferromagnetic spin-1 BECs with zero magnetization across the spectrum. There are three excited-state phases, corresponding to one ground-state phase each. The ESQPTs are signaled by a diverging density of states. The mean-field phase-space trajectories can be characterized by a winding number that is in one-to-one correspondence to the excited-state phases. We derive a closely related order parameter encoded in the dynamics of coherent states and discuss how this order parameter can be interferometrically measured in current experiments. Remarkably, the mean-field model governing the ESQPTs in spin-1 BECs with zero magnetization is encountered also, e. g., in molecular and nuclear physics. Because of the superior experimental control, spinor BECs can be considered as simulators of the ESQPTs in those systems. Our results contribute to quantum-state engineering and quantum-enhanced interferometry in spinor BECs and to the characterization of excited-state quantum phases. The latter may, in turn, lead on to applications in quantum-state engineering.
Quantum entanglement is a powerful quantum resource for enhancing measurement precision beyond classical limit. % Here we propose an entanglement-enhanced symmetry-protected destructive many-body Ramsey interferometry for precise parameter estimation. % Through matching the symmetry of input states and Hamiltonian, the spectral shift of Ramsey spectroscopy caused by interparticle interaction, noise, decoherence and experimental imperfection can be mitigated for both time-independent and time-dependent signals, as explored in the companion Letter [S. Chen, et al., Ramsey Spectroscopy via Symmetry-Protected Destructive Many-Body Interferometry (submitted)]. % In this work, we show that symmetric entangled input states can further improve the measurement precision of symmetry-protected Ramsey spectroscopy without affecting the measurement accuracy. % Through inputting spin cat states and applying suitable interaction-based readout operations, the measurement precisions of time-independent and time-dependent signals can both approach the Heisenberg limit. % In particular, we systematically analyze how precision scaling and robustness depend on the input states, parameters, experimental imperfection and decoherence. % This work establishes a practical pathway to Heisenberg-limited quantum metrology with many-body Ramsey interferometry, offering resilience against realistic noise and imperfections.
The high degree of control available over individual atoms enables precision tests of fundamental physical concepts. In this paper we study how entangled states can be leveraged to enhance a precision test of local Lorentz invariance of the electron. Employing high-fidelity entanglement of a pair of trapped Ca-ions, we find that the sensitivity can be improved by a factor of two. The sensitivity of our measurements nearly reaches the projection noise limit set by quantum mechanics. Our measurements improve the previous best limit for local Lorentz invariance of the electron using Ca-ions by factor of two to about 5×10−19.
We propose an experimentally accessible scheme to determine the lower bounds on the quantum Fisher information (QFI), which ascertains multipartite entanglement or usefulness for quantum metrology. The scheme is based on comparing the measurement statistics of a state before and after a small unitary rotation. We argue that, in general, the limited resolution of collective observables prevents the detection of large QFI. This can be overcome by performing an additional operation prior to the measurement. We illustrate the power of this protocol for present-day spin-squeezing experiments, where the same operation used for the preparation of the initial spin-squeezed state improves also the measurement precision and hence the lower bound on the QFI by 2 orders of magnitude. We also establish a connection to the Leggett-Garg inequalities. We show how to simulate a variant of the inequalities with our protocol and demonstrate that large QFI is necessary for their violation with coarse-grained detectors.