Quantum entanglement serves as an important resource for quantum processing. In the original thought experiment of the Quantum Cheshire Cat, the physical properties of the cat (state) can be decoupled from its quantum entities. How do quantum entanglement and weak values affect such thought experiment? Here, we conceive a new thought experiment that exploits quantum entanglement with weak (value) measurement. Specifically, we ask: can two entangled particles exchange physical and quantum properties? We answer the question in the affirmative.
Quantum entanglement serves as an important resource for quantum processing. In the original thought experiment of the Quantum Cheshire Cat, the physical properties of the cat (state) can be decoupled from its quantum entities. How do quantum entanglement and weak values affect such thought experiment? Here, we conceive a new thought experiment that exploits quantum entanglement with weak (value) measurement. Specifically, we ask: can two entangled particles exchange physical and quantum properties? We answer the question in the affirmative.
Abstract One of the common conceptions of nature, typically derived from the experiences with classical systems, is that attributes of the matter coexist with the substance. In the quantum regime, however, the quantum particle itself and its physical property may be in spatial separation, known as the quantum Cheshire cat effect. While there have been several reports to date on the observation of the quantum Cheshire cat effect, all such experiments are based on first-order interferometry and destructive projection measurement, thus allowing simple interpretation due to measurement-induced disturbance and also subject to trivial interpretation based on classical waves. In this work, we report an experimental observation of the quantum Cheshire cat effect with noninvasive weak quantum measurement as originally proposed. The use of the weak-measurement probe has allowed us to identify the location of the single photon and that of the disembodied polarization state in a quantum interferometer. The weak-measurement probe based on two-photon interference makes our observation unable to be explained by classical physics. We furthermore elucidate the quantum Cheshire cat effect as quantum interference of the transition amplitudes for the photon and the polarization state which are directly obtained from the measurement outcomes or the weak values. Our work not only reveals the true quantum nature of Cheshire cat effect but also sheds light on a comprehensive understanding for the counter-intuitive quantum phenomena.
Abstract A common-sense perception of a physical system is that it is inseparable from its physical properties. The notion of quantum Cheshire cat challenges this, as far as quantum systems are concerned. It shows that a quantum system can be decoupled from its physical property under suitable pre and postselections. However, in the quantum Cheshire cat setup, the decoupling is not permanent. The photon, for example, and its circular polarization is separated and then recombined. In this paper, we present a thought experiment where we decouple two photons from their respective polarizations and then interchange them during recombination. Thus, our proposal shows that that the belongingness of a property for a physical system is very volatile in the quantum world. This raises the question of reality of an observable at a much deeper level.
Intuition suggests that an object should carry all of its physical properties. However, a quantum object may not act in such a manner-it can temporarily leave some of its physical properties where it never appears. This phenomenon is known as the quantum Cheshire cat effect. It has been proposed that a quantum object can even permanently discard a physical property and obtain a new one it did not initially have. Here, we observe this effect experimentally by casting non-unitary imaginary-time evolution on a photonic cluster state to extract weak values, which reveals the counterintuitive phenomenon that two photons exchange their spins without classically meeting each other. A phenomenon presenting only in the quantum realm, our results are in stark contrast with the perception of inseparability between objects and properties, and shed new light on comprehension of the ontology of observables.
The quantum Cheshire cat effect is an important phenomenon in quantum mechanics that reveals the separability of physical properties from their carriers. This effect transcends the classical framework whose attributes must be inherently attached to objects, providing new perspectives for quantum information and precision measurement. According to the quantum Cheshire cat effect, we prepare a pre-selected state of a spin-1/2 atomic system composed of two particles through a pre-selection process. We conduct quantum weak measurements on the spins and positions of these two atoms and extract weak values by using the method of imaginary time evolution (ITE). Subsequently, we perform post-selection on these two atoms and design two distinct post-selected states. Initially, we calculate analytical solutions when both atoms encounter these two different post-selected states separately. Then, during the stage of obtaining weak values via ITE, we first discuss the scenario with only one post-selected state. In this case, our experimental goal is to achieve spin exchange between the two atoms. We use ITE to obtain normalized coincidence rate for the system. By linearly fitting these normalized coincidence rate, we derive numerical solutions for the weak values of the system. The comparison between the analytical solutions and numerical results indicates that they are in close agreement, demonstrating that our method promotes spin exchange between the two atoms. Next, we examine scenarios involving both post-selected states in the post-selection process. After completing weak measurements on particles, delayed-choice allows them to evolve along different paths ultimately leading to distinct post-selected states. One particular post-selected state that results in final measurement outcomes indicates that the spin exchange occurs between both particles with amplification. Conversely, the other post-selected state ensures that even after undergoing weak measurement and delayed-choice, the states of the two particles remain consistent with their pre-measurement conditions. We also compare the analytical and numerical solutions of the experiment involving delayed choice and find that they are very consistent with each other. This consistency indicates that delayed-choice indeed has a significant influence on whether the final exchange occurs. Our research theoretically confirms the feasibility of fermionic systems within bipartite quantum Cheshire cat effects and illustrates how delayed-choice influences quantum Cheshire cat effects in spin-1/2 atomic systems.
As a fundamental characteristic of physical entities, wave‒particle duality describes whether a microscopic entity exhibits wave or particle attributes depending on the specific experimental setup. This assumption is premised on the notion that physical properties are inseparable from the objective carrier. However, after the concept of the quantum Cheshire cats was proposed, which makes the separation of physical attributes from the entity possible, the premise no longer holds. Furthermore, an experimental demonstration of the separation of the wave and particle attributes inspired by this scenario remains scarce. In this work, we experimentally separated the wave and particle attributes of a single photon by exploiting the quantum Cheshire cat concept for the first time. By applying a weak disturbance to the evolution of the system, we achieve an effect similar to the quantum Cheshire cat and demonstrated the separation of the wave and particle attributes via the extraction of weak values. Our work provides a new perspective for the in-depth understanding of wave‒particle duality and promotes the application of weak measurements in fundamentals of quantum mechanics.
Wave and particle are two fundamental properties of nature. The wave–particle duality has indicated that a quantum object may exhibit the behaviors of both wave and particle, depending upon the circumstances of the experiment. The major significance of wave–particle duality has led to a fundamental equation in quantum mechanics: the Schrödinger equation. At present, the principle of wave–particle duality has been deeply rooted in people’s hearts. This leads to a common-sense perception that wave property and particle property coexist simultaneously in a quantum entity, and these two physical attributes cannot be completely separated from each other. In classical physics, a similar common-sense thought is that a physical system is inseparable from its physical properties. However, this has been recently challenged and beaten by a quantum phenomenon called the “quantum Cheshire cat,” in which a cat and its grin can be spatially separated. In this work, we propose a thought experiment based on the technology similar to the quantum Cheshire cat. We find that wave and particle attributes of a quantum entity can be completely separated, thus successfully dismantling the wave–particle duality for a quantum entity. Our result is still consistent with the complementarity principle and deepens the understanding of quantum foundations.