Detecting quantum vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field
Abstract
Quantum vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field result in two signatures on a harmonically trapped charged particle: a shift from the natural trap frequency and generation of quantum coherences. We assess the role of the long-wavelength and rotating-wave approximations in estimating this frequency shift. We estimate the magnitude of the frequency shift using parameters from a single-electron cyclotron experiment and also demonstrate how the dependence of the frequency shift on the magnetic field of the cyclotron is tied to the rotating-wave approximation. We expect the frequency shift to be observable in future experiments. We also suggest a possible route to detecting vacuum-generated quantum coherences. These experiments should settle the debate on the choice of approximations and gauge in capturing the effect of the quantum vacuum fluctuations.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2404.10453,
title = {Detecting quantum vacuum fluctuations of the electromagnetic field},
author = {Aaron Malcolm and B. Sharmila and Zhi-Wei Wang and Animesh Datta},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2404.10453},
year = {2024}
}
Comments
6 pages, 1 figure