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Physical Review A

Quantum polarization for three-dimensional fields via Stokes operators

Alfredo Luis

Published Feb 17, 2005• 23 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We study the polarization properties of three-dimensional quantum light fields by using the Stokes operators. We modify the standard definition of degree of polarization in order to encompass polarization properties in the quantum domain. We show that the states with the largest degree of polarization and least polarization fluctuations are the SU(3) coherent states. We show that the standard quadrature coherent states are Poissonian superpositions of SU(3) coherent states. We examine the polarization properties of some other relevant field states.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.71.023810

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We study the polarization properties of three-dimensional quantum light fields by using the Stokes operators. We modify the standard definition of degree of polarization in order to encompass polarization properties in the quantum domain. We show that the states with the largest degree of polarization and least polarization fluctuations are the SU(3) coherent states. We show that the standard quadrature coherent states are Poissonian superpositions of SU(3) coherent states. We examine the polarization properties of some other relevant field states.
We introduce a probability distribution for polarization of three-dimensional quantum light fields as a marginal of the quadrature QQQ function for a three-mode field by removing the variables irrelevant for polarization (total intensity and global phase). The probability distribution turns out to be determined by projection on SU(3) coherent states. We introduce a degree of polarization as the distance between the polarization distribution and the uniform distribution associated with completely unpolarized light. We study the relation between two- and three-dimensional polarization by considering field states with a component in the vacuum state. We apply this formalism to some relevant field states.
We propose an operational degree of polarization in terms of the variance of the Stokes vector minimized over all the directions of the Poincaré sphere. We examine the properties of this second-order definition and carry out its experimental determination. Quantum states with the same standard (first-order) degree of polarization are correctly discriminated by this new measure. We argue that a comprehensive quantum characterization of polarization properties requires a whole hierarchy of higher-order degrees.
Quantum optics entails polarization properties that cannot be fully described by the classical Stokes parameters. In this work, we characterize the polarization of classical as well as quantum fields by means of a probability distribution on the Poincar\'e sphere. This serves to define the degree of polarization of a field state as the distance between the corresponding polarization distribution and the uniform distribution representing unpolarized light. We apply this definition to relevant quantum field states such as SU(2) coherent, squeezed, number, and phase states.
A brief review of theoretical studies of the quantum state of polarization of light exhibiting the level of fluctuations in at least one of the Stokes parameters which is below the quantum noise limit is presented. Two approaches to generation of polarization-squeezed state of light are analyzed in detail: by propagating coherent radiation in a cubic nonlinear medium and by mixing radiation of two orthogonally polarized quadrature-squeezed modes. The degree of polarization of light is discussed. Other areas of quantum polarization optics, in particular, entanglement of quantum Stokes parameters and quantum polarization tomography, are also discussed.
We comprehensively review the quantum theory of the polarization properties of light. In classical optics, these traits are characterized by the Stokes parameters, which can be geometrically interpreted using the Poincaré sphere. Remarkably, these Stokes parameters can also be applied to the quantum world, but then important differences emerge: now, because fluctuations in the number of photons are unavoidable, one is forced to work in the three-dimensional Poincaré space that can be regarded as a set of nested spheres. Additionally, higher-order moments of the Stokes variables might play a substantial role for quantum states, which is not the case for most classical Gaussian states. This brings about important differences between these two worlds that we review in detail. In particular, the classical degree of polarization produces unsatisfactory results in the quantum domain. We compare alternative quantum degrees and put forth that they order various states differently. Finally, intrinsically nonclassical states are explored, and their potential applications in quantum technologies are discussed.
It is shown that the description of polarization based on quantization of classical Stokes parameters is incomplete in quantum domain. For example, the polarization of the electric dipole radiation of the atomic or molecular transitions is described by nine generators of the SU(3) subalgebra in the Weyl-Heisenberg algebra of photons, in other words, by nine independent Stokes operators instead of four dependent classical Stokes parameters. Although some of the Stokes operators have one and the same averages, they describe absolutely different physical quantities with strongly different quantum fluctuations. The quantum polarization properties of the electric dipole and quadrupole radiation are examined as a function of distance for the near, intermediate, and far zones. Application of results in the near-field optics and quantum entanglement research is discussed.