The mechanism of the Zeno effect

L. A. Khalfin

Lajos Diósi

One can reduce the involved derivation of Balachandran and Roy of their `anti-Zeno' effect [Phys.Rev.Lett. 84, 4019 (2000)] to the derivation of standard Zeno effect. The mechanism of what the authors call `anti-Zeno' effect is a dynamic version of Zeno effect.

H. Fearn, Willis E. Lamb

This paper represents some assorted opinions of the authors, presented in a tutorial fashion, regarding the quantum Zeno effect. The paper attempts to answer the question, is the Zeno effect consistent with quantum mechanics?.

L. A. Khalfin

Wayne M. Itano

As of October 2006, there were approximately 535 citations to the seminal 1977 paper of Misra and Sudarshan that pointed out the quantum Zeno paradox (more often called the quantum Zeno effect). In simple terms, the quantum Zeno effect refers to a slowing down of the evolution of a quantum state in the limit that the state is observed continuously. There has been much disagreement as to how the quantum Zeno effect should be defined and as to whether it is really a paradox, requiring new physics, or merely a consequence of "ordinary" quantum mechanics. The experiment of Itano, Heinzen, Bollinger, and Wineland, published in 1990, has been cited around 347 times and seems to be the one most often called a demonstration of the quantum Zeno effect. Given that there is disagreement as to what the quantum Zeno effect is , there naturally is disagreement as to whether that experiment demonstrated the quantum Zeno effect. Some differing perspectives regarding the quantum Zeno effect and what would constitute an experimental demonstration are discussed.

Hiromichi Nakazato, Mikio Namiki, Saverio Pascazio +1 more