We introduce several coefficients characterizing the degree of intermode correlations and inseparability for multimode continuous variable quantum systems. All these coefficients are expressed either in terms of traces or determinants of the matrices (or their squares) formed from covariances of the quadrature components, or in terms of partial purities of the modes; thus they are more easy to use in calculations than frequently used entropic measures of entanglement. We compare the new and 'conventional' measures, considering two examples: (1) finite (pure) superpositions of coherent states (including multidimensional even and odd coherent states); (2) the evolution of generic (mixed and squeezed) Gaussian states of two resonantly coupled modes with the most general bilinear coupling in the cases of the nondegenerate parametric amplifier and the parametric converter.
We introduce several coefficients characterizing the degree of intermode correlations and inseparability for multimode continuous variable quantum systems. All these coefficients are expressed either in terms of traces or determinants of the matrices (or their squares) formed from covariances of the quadrature components, or in terms of partial purities of the modes; thus they are more easy to use in calculations than frequently used entropic measures of entanglement. We compare the new and 'conventional' measures, considering two examples: (1) finite (pure) superpositions of coherent states (including multidimensional even and odd coherent states); (2) the evolution of generic (mixed and squeezed) Gaussian states of two resonantly coupled modes with the most general bilinear coupling in the cases of the nondegenerate parametric amplifier and the parametric converter.
We present a detailed report on the decoherence of quantum states of continuous variable systems under the action of a quantum optical master equation resulting from the interaction with general Gaussian uncorrelated environments. The rate of decoherence is quantified by relating it to the decay rates of various, complementary measures of the quantum nature of a state, such as the purity, some non-classicality indicators in phase space, and, for two-mode states, entanglement measures and total correlations between the modes. Different sets of physically relevant initial configurations are considered, including one- and two-mode Gaussian states, number states, and coherent superpositions. Our analysis shows that, generally, the use of initially squeezed configurations does not help to preserve the coherence of Gaussian states, whereas it can be effective in protecting coherent superpositions of both number states and Gaussian wavepackets.
We present a detailed report on the decoherence of quantum states of continuous variable systems under the action of a quantum optical master equation resulting from the interaction with general Gaussian uncorrelated environments. The rate of decoherence is quantified by relating it to the decay rates of various, complementary measures of the quantum nature of a state, such as the purity, some non-classicality indicators in phase space, and, for two-mode states, entanglement measures and total correlations between the modes. Different sets of physically relevant initial configurations are considered, including one- and two-mode Gaussian states, number states, and coherent superpositions. Our analysis shows that, generally, the use of initially squeezed configurations does not help to preserve the coherence of Gaussian states, whereas it can be effective in protecting coherent superpositions of both number states and Gaussian wavepackets.
Quantum entanglement of pure states of a bipartite system is defined as the amount of local or marginal (i.e. referring to the subsystems) entropy. For mixed states this identification vanishes, since the global loss of information about the state makes it impossible to distinguish between quantum and classical correlations. Here we show how the joint knowledge of the global and marginal degrees of information of a quantum state, quantified by the purities or, in general, by information entropies, provides an accurate characterization of its entanglement. In particular, for Gaussian states of continuous variable systems, we classify the entanglement of two-mode states according to their degree of total and partial mixedness, comparing the different roles played by the purity and the generalized p-entropies in quantifying the mixedness and bounding the entanglement. We prove the existence of strict upper and lower bounds on the entanglement and the existence of extremally (maximally and minimally) entangled states at fixed global and marginal degrees of information. This results allow for a powerful, operative method to measure mixed-state entanglement without the full tomographic reconstruction of the state. Finally, we briefly discuss the ongoing extension of our analysis to the quantification of multipartite entanglement in highly symmetric Gaussian states of arbitrary 1 × N-mode partitions.
We present a complete analysis of the multipartite entanglement of three-mode Gaussian states of continuous-variable systems. We derive standard forms which characterize the covariance matrix of pure and mixed three-mode Gaussian states up to local unitary operations, showing that the local entropies of pure Gaussian states are bound to fulfill a relationship which is stricter than the general Araki-Lieb inequality. Quantum correlations can be quantified by a proper convex roof extension of the squared logarithmic negativity, the continuous-variable tangle, or contangle. We review and elucidate in detail the proof that in multimode Gaussian states the contangle satisfies a monogamy inequality constraint [G. Adesso and F. Illuminati, New J. Phys8, 15 (2006)]. The residual contangle, emerging from the monogamy inequality, is an entanglement monotone under Gaussian local operations and classical communications and defines a measure of genuine tripartite entanglements. We determine the analytical expression of the residual contangle for arbitrary pure three-mode Gaussian states and study in detail the distribution of quantum correlations in such states. This analysis yields that pure, symmetric states allow for a promiscuous entanglement sharing, having both maximum tripartite entanglement and maximum couplewise entanglement between any pair of modes. We thus name these states GHZ∕W states of continuous-variable systems because they are simultaneous continuous-variable counterparts of both the GHZ and the W states of three qubits. We finally consider the effect of decoherence on three-mode Gaussian states, studying the decay of the residual contangle. The GHZ∕W states are shown to be maximally robust against losses and thermal noise.
Abstract. Quantum entanglement of pure states of a bipartite system is defined as the amount of local or marginal (i.e. referring to the subsystems) entropy. For mixed states this identification vanishes, since the global loss of information about the state makes it impossible to distinguish between quantum and classical correlations. Here we show how the joint knowledge of the global and marginal degrees of information of a quantum state, quantified by the purities or in general by information entropies, provides an accurate characterization of its entanglement. In particular, for Gaussian states of continuous variable systems, we classify the entanglement of two–mode states according to their degree of total and partial mixedness, comparing the different roles played by the purity and the generalized p−entropies in quantifying the mixedness and bounding the entanglement. We prove the existence of strict upper and lower bounds on the entanglement and the existence of extremally (maximally and minimally) entangled states at fixed global and marginal degrees of information. This results allow for a powerful, operative method to measure mixedstate entanglement without the full tomographic reconstruction of the state. Finally, we briefly discuss the ongoing extension of our analysis to the quantification of multipartite entanglement in highly symmetric Gaussian states of arbitrary 1 × N-mode partitions. 1.