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European Journal of Physics

Zeno inhibition of polarization rotation in an optically active medium

Isabel Gonzalo, Miguel A. Porras, Alfredo Luis

Published Apr 23, 2015• 6 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract We describe an experiment in which the rotation of the polarization of light propagating in an optically active water solution of D-fructose tends to be inhibited by frequent monitoring whether the polarization remains unchanged. This is an example of the Zeno effect that has remarkable pedagogical interest because of its conceptual simplicity, easy implementation, low cost, and because the same the Zeno effect holds at classical and quantum levels. An added value is the demonstration of the Zeno effect beyond typical idealized assumptions in a practical setting with real polarizers.

DOI
10.1088/0143-0807/36/4/045001

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Abstract We describe an experiment in which the rotation of the polarization of light propagating in an optically active water solution of D-fructose tends to be inhibited by frequent monitoring whether the polarization remains unchanged. This is an example of the Zeno effect that has remarkable pedagogical interest because of its conceptual simplicity, easy implementation, low cost, and because the same the Zeno effect holds at classical and quantum levels. An added value is the demonstration of the Zeno effect beyond typical idealized assumptions in a practical setting with real polarizers.
We provide theoretical and experimental evidence of a classical-optics realization of quantum Zeno dynamics. In contrast to other approaches, the classical implementation is extremely simple and adaptable. Frequently monitoring the transverse spreading of the light emitted by an extended source results in a nontrivial dynamics where spreading and all other transverse effects associated with light propagation as the increase of spatial coherence tends to be inhibited. This is fully equivalent to a quantum Zeno dynamics where monitoring whether a quantum free particle at rest remains in a spatial interval causes inhibition of the quantum-state evolution, including the degree of purity.
Abstract Quantum Zeno effect concerns deterministic dynamics of a quantum system induced by a series of projective quantum measurements. Applying this effect in optics, one can achieve an arbitrary lossless transformation of linear polarization of light with help of linear polarizers. However, to demonstrate this effect in practice, we have to take into account unavoidable losses in each polarizer that limits probability of successful transformations. In this work, we theoretically study a realistic quantum Zeno effect with an optimal discrete set of polarizers and find the maximum success probability
The quantum Zeno effect (QZE) is seemingly paradoxical in a sense that an inhibition of transition or a guidance of system can be realized without loss of probability amplitudes in spite of the use of non-unitary processes. But it is quite universal and has been found in various quantum systems as well as in classical wave systems. In this report we will present two examples of QZE in the field of optics . One is theoptical pumping scheme in which atomic spin motion can be controlled without photon absorption in the fast pumping limit. The other example is the light propagation through a series of offset-spliced fibers . Two propagation modes, wave and ray, are possible in optical fibers, and QZE is found to occur only in the former mode.
We discuss a simple, experimentally feasible scheme, which elucidates the principles of controlling the reservoir spectrum and the spectral broadening incurred by repeated measurements. This control can yield either the inhibition (Zeno effect) or the acceleration (anti-Zeno effect) of the quasiexponential decay of the observed state by means of frequent measurements. In the discussed scheme, a photon is bouncing back and forth between two perfect mirrors, each time passing a polarization rotator. The horizontal and vertical polarizations can be viewed as analogs of an excited and a ground state of a two level system (TLS). A polarization beam splitter and an absorber for the vertically polarized photon are inserted between the mirrors, and effect measurements of the polarization. The polarization angle acquired in the electrooptic polarization rotator can fluctuate randomly, e.g., via noisy modulation. In the absence of an absorber the polarization randomization corresponds to TLS decay into an infinite-temperature reservoir. The non-Markovian nature of the decay stems from the many round trips required for the randomization. We consider the influence of the polarization measurements by the absorber on this non-Markovian decay, and develop a theory of the Zeno and anti-Zeno effects in this system.
The quantum Zeno effect describes the inhibition of quantum evolution by frequent measurements. Here, we propose a scheme for entangling two given photons based on this effect. We consider a linear-optics set-up with an absorber medium whose two-photon absorption rate ξ2γξ_{2γ}ξ2γ​ exceeds the one-photon loss rate ξ1γξ_{1γ}ξ1γ​. In order to reach an error probability PerrorP_{\rm error}Perror​, we need ξ1γ/ξ2γ<2Perror2/π2ξ_{1γ}/ξ_{2γ}<2P_{\rm error}^2/π^2ξ1γ​/ξ2γ​<2Perror2​/π2, which is a factor of 64 better than previous approaches (e.g., by Franson et al). Since typical media have $ξ_{2γ}
Abstract The quantum Zeno effect is one in which a quantum system never jumps to a new state if an experimenter keeps observing it. This effect is illustrated in several examples. The chapter describes the measurement of the state of a two-level atom under radiation that would normally cause the atom to change to the other state. Polarized photons can pass through optically active material multiple times, with polarization measurement at each stage, so that the polarization does not change. One can use superposition and interference to do interaction-free measurements. A hypothetical bomb-detection device (the EV effect) uses this method to tell that a bomb is not a dud without exploding it. An actual experimental used interference to detect the position of a mirror, which is never touched by any photon. Experimenters have also formed an image using photons that never touch the object imaged.