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arXiv:quant-ph/0210137 · Physical Review A

Separability criterion for separate quantum systems

Michael G. Raymer, Andrew Funk, Barry C. Sanders, Hubert de Guise

Published May 27, 2003• 86 citations

Abstract

Entanglement, or quantum inseparability, is a crucial resource in quantum information applications, and therefore the experimental generation of separated yet entangled systems is of paramount importance. Experimental demonstrations of inseparability with light are not uncommon, but such demonstrations in physically well-separated massive systems, such as distinct gases of atoms, are new and present significant challenges and opportunities. Rigorous theoretical criteria are needed for demonstrating that given data are sufficient to confirm entanglement. Such criteria for experimental data have been derived for the case of continuous-variable systems obeying the Heisenberg-Weyl (position-momentum) commutator. To address the question of experimental verification more generally, we develop a sufficiency criterion for arbitrary states of two arbitrary systems. When applied to the recent study by Julsgaard, Kozhekin, and Polzik [Nature 413, 400 (2001)] of spin-state entanglement of two separate, macroscopic samples of atoms, our criterion confirms the presence of spin entanglement.

DOI: 10.1103/physreva.67.052104

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Entanglement, or quantum inseparability, is a crucial resource in quantum information applications, and therefore the experimental generation of separated yet entangled systems is of paramount importance. Experimental demonstrations of inseparability with light are not uncommon, but such demonstrations in physically well-separated massive systems, such as distinct gases of atoms, are new and present significant challenges and opportunities. Rigorous theoretical criteria are needed for demonstrating that given data are sufficient to confirm entanglement. Such criteria for experimental data have been derived for the case of continuous-variable systems obeying the Heisenberg-Weyl (position-momentum) commutator. To address the question of experimental verification more generally, we develop a sufficiency criterion for arbitrary states of two arbitrary systems. When applied to the recent study by Julsgaard, Kozhekin, and Polzik [Nature 413, 400 (2001)] of spin-state entanglement of two separate, macroscopic samples of atoms, our criterion confirms the presence of spin entanglement.

Entanglement plays a key role in quantum information. The separability problem arises: how to prove that a given quantum state is entangled? Covariance-matrix-based entanglement criteria are the most important and widely used approach to this problem in continuous variable systems. Here, the separability problem is systematically studied in the more experimentally realistic setting that the questioned state is only partly known. A simple general formalism is proposed for this variant of the separability problem. It builds relations between certain classes of criteria and bounds the power of these criteria. In particular, it shows the equivalence of many seemingly different covariance-matrix-based criteria; it offers guidance on the study of and reveals the inherent limitations of covariance-matrix-based criteria. Also, a Shannon entropic criterion is proposed for m ⊕ n-mode states. It unifies and improves many known covariance-matrix-based criteria and Shannon entropic criteria; it is necessary and sufficient for 1 ⊕ n-mode Gaussian states and m ⊕ n-mode bisymmetric Gaussian states.

Entanglement, a defining property of quantum mechanics in which two physical subsystems cannot be seen as independent entities, challenges our everyday experience and classical intuition. However, only such strong quantum correlations enable quantum technologies, including quantum computing or communication, while revealing the limits of our classical worldview by violating local realism. Given its importance in modern quantum science, we present this tutorial addressing the questions: What is entanglement, how does it differ from classical correlations, and how can it be experimentally verified? Using celebrated examples, such as Schrödinger's cat, we highlight the distinction between classical and quantum correlations and illustrate the definition of entangled and separable states. We review entanglement criteria by discussing Heisenberg-type uncertainty relations for continuous variables and the CHSH inequality for discrete systems. Focusing on concepts of quantum correlations and operational entanglement witnesses, we provide accessible tools and illustrative examples aimed at demystifying entanglement for a broad readership.

We develop a method to construct entanglement criteria for arbitrary multipartite systems of discrete or continuous variables and hybrid combinations of both. While any set of local operators generates a sufficient condition for entanglement of arbitrary quantum states, a suitable set leads to a necessary and sufficient criterion for pure states. The criteria are readily implementable with existing technology and reveal entanglement that remains undetected by the respective state-of-the-art methods for discrete and continuous variables.

The criterion for Gaussian continuous variable entanglement is experimentally compare in the presence of loss, to a criterion for observation of the EPR-paradox and demonstrated qualitative and quantitative differences. The differences arise from the sensitivity of the EPR-paradox to state mixedness, a property that the inseparability criterion is entirely insensitive to. Entanglement on a diagram of the sideband photon number required to generate the entanglement - a property synonymous to inseparability - versus the excess sideband photons is presented. Efficacy contours of some common quantum information protocols on the diagram is displayed.

Entanglement between two macroscopic atomic ensembles induced by measurement on an ancillary light system has proven to be a powerful method for engineering quantum memories and quantum state transfer. Here we investigate the feasibility of such methods for generation, manipulation, and detection of genuine multipartite entanglement (Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger and clusterlike states) between mesoscopic atomic ensembles without the need of individual addressing of the samples. Our results extend in a nontrivial way the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen entanglement between two macroscopic gas samples reported experimentally in [B. Julsgaard, A. Kozhekin, and E. Polzik, Nature (London) 413, 400 (2001)]. We find that under realistic conditions, a second orthogonal light pulse interacting with the atomic samples, can modify and even reverse the entangling action of the first one leaving the samples in a separable state.