In this paper, we are interested in detecting the presence of a nearby phase-sensitive object, where traveling light works out under a low-photon loss rate. Here we investigate the optimal quantum phase estimation with generalized multi-component Schrodinger cat states. In addition, we show the optimal conditions of the generalized multi-component cat states for the phase estimation in a lossless scenario. We then demonstrate that the generalized multi-component cat states can beat the performances of the NOON and two-mode squeezed vacuum states in the presence of small loss, while maintaining the quantum advantage over the standard quantum limit, attainable by coherent states. Finally, we propose a generation scheme of the entangled multi-component cat states with current or near-term optical technologies.
@article{arxiv.2003.06302,
title = {Optimal quantum phase estimation with generalized multi-component Schrodinger cat states},
author = {Seung-Woo Lee and Su-Yong Lee and Jaewan Kim},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2003.06302},
year = {2020}
}