In a recent paper we have studied the peculiar features of the Berry and Aharonov-Anandan geometric phases for isolated spins $S\ensuremath{\geqslant}1.$ We have assumed that they are submitted to a dipole and quadrupole coupling to external
E and
B fields with the mild restriction $\mathbf{E}\ifmmode\cdot\else\textperiodcentered\fi{}\mathbf{B}=0$. This implies discrete symmetries leading to remarkable simplifications of the geometry and algebra involved. The aim of the present work is to describe realistic proposals, within the realm of atomic physics, for the verification of some of our most significant theoretical predictions. There are several challenges to be overcome. For alkali-metal atoms, most commonly used in atomic interferometers, the only practical way to generate quadrupole coupling, with a strength comparable to the dipole one, is the ac Stark effect induced by a nearly resonant light beam. One then has to face the instability of the``dressed'' atom hyperfine (hf) level, a candidate for our isolated spin. One deleterious effect is the apparition of an imaginary part in the quadrupole to dipole coupling strength ratio, $\ensuremath{\lambda}$. Fortunately we have found a simple way to get rid of $\mathfrak{I}(\ensuremath{\lambda})$ by an appropriate detuning. We are left with an unstable isolated spin. This implies an upper bound to the quantum cycle duration
Tc. In the case of the Berry's phase,
Tc has a lower bound due to the necessity of keeping the nonadiabatic corrections below a predefined level. We have found a compromise in the case of the
F=2,m=0 87Rb ground-state hf level. This is our candidate for the measurement of the somewhat ``exotic'' Berry's phase acquired by the
S=2,m=0 state at the end of a quantum cycle involving a rotation of $\ensuremath{\pi}$ of the
E field---in practice, the linear polarization of the dressing beam ---about the
B field direction. We have found a way to implement, in a Ramsey-type interferometric measurement, the procedures aimed at controlling the nonadiabatic corrections, as described in detail in our previous theoretical paper. A numerical simulation of our experimental proposal shows that a
0.1 accurate determination of Berry's phase, free of nonadiabatic corrections, can be achieved. Measurements could also be considered for cold
52Cr chromium atoms with
S=3, where values of $\ensuremath{\lambda}\ensuremath{\simeq}1$ can be obtained with an instability smaller than in the
87Rb case, due to a more favorable spectroscopic structure. The
F=1,m=1 hf level of the
87Rb ground state offers the opportunity to extend the measurement of Aharonov-Anandan's phases beyond the case
S=21. We construct, using ``light shift,'' the Hamiltonian ${H}_{\ensuremath{\parallel}}(t)$ generating a closed circuit in the density-matrix space which satisfies at any time the ``parallel transport'' condition, thus making the quantum cycle free from the adiabaticity condition. We also consider the case of half-integer spins (e.g.,
201Hg,
135Ba, and
137Ba), with their own specific features. We show how the difference of Berry's phases for states
S=23 and
S=21, with
m=21, can be exploited to achieve a holonomic maximum entanglement of three qubits.
We derive the general formula giving Berry's phase for an arbitrary spin, having both magnetic-dipole and electric-quadrupole couplings with external time-dependent fields. We assume that the 'effective' electric and magnetic fields remain orthogonal during the quantum cycles. This mild restriction has many advantages. It provides simple symmetries leading to useful selection rules. Furthermore, the Hamiltonian parameter space coincides with the density matrix space for a spin S = 1. This implies a mathematical identity between Berry's phase and the Aharonov–Anandan phase, which is lost for S > 1. We have found that new physical features of Berry's phases emerge for integer spins ⩾2. We provide explicit numerical results of Berry's phases for S = 2, 3, 4. For any spin, one easily finds well-defined regions of the parameter space where instantaneous eigenstates remain widely separated. We have decided to stay within them and not deal with non-Abelian Berry's phases. We present a thorough and precise analysis of the non-adiabatic corrections with separate treatment for periodic and non-periodic Hamiltonian parameters. In both cases, the accuracy for satisfying the adiabatic approximation within a definite time interval is considerably improved if one chooses for the time derivatives of the parameters a time-dependence having a Blackman pulse shape. This has the effect of taming the non-adiabatic oscillation corrections which could be generated by a linear ramping. For realistic experimental conditions, the non-adibatic corrections can be kept below the 0.1% level. For a class of quantum cycles, involving as a sole periodic parameter the precession angle of the electric field around the magnetic field, the corrections odd upon the reversal of the associated rotation velocity can be canceled exactly if the quadrupole to dipole coupling is chosen appropriately ('magic values'). The even ones are eliminated by taking the difference of the Berry phases generated by two 'mirror' cycles. We end by indicating a possible application of the theoretical tools developed in this paper. We propose a way to perform a holonomic entanglement of N non-correlated 1/2-spins by performing adiabatic cycles governed by a Hamiltonian given as a nonlinear function of the total spin operator S , defined as the sum of the N individual spin operators. The basic idea behind this proposal is the mathematical fact that any non-correlated states can be expanded into eigenstates of S 2 and S z . The same eigenvalues appear several times in the decomposition when N > 2 but all these states differ by their symmetry properties under the N -spin permutations. The case N = 4 and S z = 1 is treated explicitly and a maximum entanglement is achieved.
We derive the general formula giving the Berry phase for an arbitrary spin, having both magnetic-dipole and electric-quadrupole couplings with external time-dependent fields. We assume that the effective E and B fields remain orthogonal during the quantum cycles. This mild restriction has many advantages. It provides simple symmetries leading to selection rules and the Hamiltonian-parameter and density-matrix spaces coincide for S=1. This implies the identity of the Berry and Aharonov-Anandan phases, which is lost for S>1. We have found that new features of Berry phases emerge for integer spins>2. We provide explicit numerical results of Berry phases for S=2,3,4. We give a precise analysis of the non-adiabatic corrections. The accuracy for satisfying adiabaticity is greatly improved if one chooses for the time derivatives of the parameters a time-dependence having a Blackman pulse shape. This has the effect of taming the non-adiabatic oscillation corrections which could be generated by a linear ramping. For realistic experimental conditions, the non-adibatic corrections can be kept < 0.1%. For quantum cycles,involving as sole periodic parameter the precession angle of E around B, the corrections odd upon the reversal of the angular velocity can be cancelled exactly if the quadrupole to dipole coupling ratio takes a "magic" value. The even ones are cancelled by subtraction of the phases relative to opposite velocities. As a possible application of the results of this paper we suggest a route to holonomic entanglement of N non-correlated 1/2-spins by performing adiabatic cycles governed by a Hamiltonian which is a non-linear function of the total spin operator S defined as the sum of the N spin operators. The case N=4 and Sz=1 is treated explicitly and maximum entanglement is achieved.
Beyond the adiabatic limit, the Aharonov-Anandan phase is a generalized description of Berry's phase. In this regime, systems with time-independent Hamiltonians may also acquire observable geometric phases. Here we report on a measurement of the Aharonov-Anandan phase in photonics. Different from previous optical experiments on geometric phases, the implementation is based on light modes confined in evanescently coupled waveguides rather than polarization-like systems, thereby physical models in more than two-dimensional Hilbert spaces are achievable. In a tailored photonic lattice, we realize time-independent quantum-driven harmonic oscillators initially prepared in the vacuum state and achieve a measurement of the Aharonov-Anandan phase via integrated interferometry.
We present a concept for measuring a Berry phase using an atom interferometer in an optical Ramsey arrangement. The adiabatic cyclic process needed for the appearance of a Berry phase consists of the adiabatic change of population in one of the interferometer arms. A closed circuit in parameter space is realized by the time-dependent Doppler detuning of two additional strongly focused Gaussian beams, which couple selectively to one of the interferometer arms. It is shown that the resulting additional atomic phase consists of a Berry phase corresponding to the phase difference of the two Gaussian beams and a dynamical phase caused by the dynamical Stark effect. By recombining the two interferometer arms this total phase gives rise to a shift of the interference pattern. In case of a Ramsey arrangement with magnesium atoms the parameters of an experimental realization have been calculated. Further improvements using laser-cooled and trapped atoms are discussed.
Quantum phase measurements offer a complementary route to axion searches. We show that axion-photon interactions can imprint both Aharonov-Bohm (AB) and Berry phases in experimentally motivated quantum setups. For a coherently oscillating axion dark matter background, the induced effective current generates a time dependent magnetic flux in an rf-SQUID, leading to a measurable voltage signal through the Josephson phase. For representative benchmarks, this AB phase search reaches the minimum axion-photon coupling
gaγγmin∼7.8×10−14 GeV−1 at axion mass
ma∼10−10 eV, with projected sensitivity that can improve on existing limits in that parameter space by roughly one to two orders of magnitude. We also identify a geometric phase observable in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer with an adiabatically rotating magnetic field, providing a proof-of-principle phase-based probe of meV-scale axions even when they do not constitute the dark matter, although sensitivity on the coupling remains weaker than current bounds with conservative tabletop benchmarks. Extending the analysis to a three level photon-axion quasiparticle (AQP)-axion system, with the AQP realized in a topological magnetic insulator, we find a potentially measurable THz Berry phase dominated by the AQP sector, furnishing a nontrivial validation of the formalism in a richer coupled system. These setups establish quantum phase observables as a useful new framework for axion searches, with immediate phenomenological promise in superconducting circuits and longer term potential in quantum enhanced interferometry.