Extending a recent result by Frank and Lieb, we show an entropic uncertainty principle for mixed states in a Hilbert space relatively to pairs of positive operator valued measures that are independent in some sense.
The principal aim of this Comment is to correct those entropic uncertainty relations that are presented in a paper by Massar [arXiv:quant-ph/0703036v2 (current version)], concerning two approaches to a study of the noise produced by POVM's. It is next emphasized that the first of the entropic bounds for POVM obtained by the above author has been already presented in Ref. [8]. Some exposition obscurity with equation (14) of the commented paper is elucidated. Finally, some more specific remarks on the paper content are given.
In connection with the uncertainty principle in quantum mechanics (Heisenberg) or in time-frequency analysis (Heisenberg-Gabor), we study its formulation in terms of entropic inequalities, extending results recently derived by Bialynicki-Birula [1] and Zozor et al. [2]. These results can be considered as generalizations of the Heisenberg inequalities in the sense that they measure the mutual uncertainty of a random variable (or wave function) and its conjugated random variable (or Fourier transformed wave function) through their associated Rényi entropies with conjugated indexes. We consider here the more general case where the entropic indexes are not conjugated, in both cases where the state space is discrete and continuous: we discuss the existence of an uncertainty inequality depending on the location of the entropic indexes α and β in the plane (α, β). Our results explain and extend a recent study by Luis [3], where states with quantum fluctuations below the Gaussian case are discussed at the single point (2, 2).
The Heisenberg uncertainty principle has a more precise formulation in terms of inequalities involving quantum entropies. Currently known entropic uncertainty relations are presented; they capture and extend Heisenberg's idea of the unpredictability of the outcomes of incompatible measurements. Distinct results are obtained for finite- and infinite-dimensional Hilbert spaces. Applications are surveyed, including the formulation of entanglement witnesses, current ideas about wave-particle duality, and the analysis of quantum cryptography.