Non-local double-path Casimir phase in atom interferometers
Quantum Gases
2013-04-05 v4 Statistical Mechanics
Atomic Physics
Quantum Physics
Abstract
We present a quantum open system theory of atom interferometers evolving in the quantized electromagnetic field bounded by an ideal conductor. Our treatment reveals an unprecedented feature of matter-wave propagation, namely the appearance of a non-local double-path phase coherence. Such a non-local phase arises from the coarse-graining over the quantized electromagnetic field and internal atomic degrees of freedom, yielding a non-Hamiltonian evolution of the atomic waves moving in presence of correlated quantum dipole and field fluctuations. We develop a diagrammatic interpretation of this phase, and estimate it for realistic experimental parameters.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1207.5059,
title = {Non-local double-path Casimir phase in atom interferometers},
author = {François Impens and Ryan O. Behunin and Claudio Ccapa Ttira and Paulo A. Maia Neto},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1207.5059},
year = {2013}
}
Comments
5 pages, 1 figure. Final version, published in the Europhysics Letters