Related papers: Quantum time-of-flight measurements: kick clock ve…
We consider a number of aspects of the problem of defining time observables in quantum theory. Time observables are interesting quantities in quantum theory because they often cannot be associated with self-adjoint operators. Their…
We propose a time-of-arrival operator in quantum mechanics by conditioning on a quantum clock. This allows us to bypass some of the problems of previous proposals, and to obtain a Hermitian time of arrival operator whose probability…
An operational time of arrival is introduced using a realistic position and momentum measurement scheme. The phase space measurement involves the dynamics of a quantum particle probed by a measuring device. For such a measurement an…
Quantum mechanics imposes a fundamental tradeoff between the accuracy of time measurements and the size of the systems used as clocks. When the measurements of different time intervals are combined, the errors due to the finite clock size…
We critically discuss the measure of very short time intervals. By means of a Gedankenexperiment, we describe an ideal clock based on the occurrence of completely random events. Many previous thought experiments have suggested fundamental…
A number of approaches to the problem of defining arrival and dwell time probabilities in quantum theory make use of idealised models of clocks. An interesting question is the extent to which the probabilities obtained in this way are…
Time plays a crucial role in the intuitive understanding of the world around us. Within quantum mechanics, however, time is not usually treated as an observable quantity; it enters merely as a parameter in the laws of motion of physical…
Time plays a fundamental role in our ability to make sense of the physical laws in the world around us. The nature of time has puzzled people -- from the ancient Greeks to the present day -- resulting in a long running debate between…
Uncertainty relations play a crucial role in quantum mechanics. Well-defined methods exist for the derivation of such uncertainties for pairs of observables. Other approaches also allow the formulation of time-energy uncertainty relations,…
Continuous clocks, i.e. the clocks that measure time in a continuous manner, are regarded as an essential component of sensing technology. Precision and recurrence time are two basic features of continuous clocks. In this paper, in the…
A quantum clock working as a control device is examined. The quality of the control process is characterized by the magnitude of deviation of perturbed state from unperturbed state of the controlled system. Uncertainty relations that relate…
Measuring time means counting the occurrence of periodic phenomena. Over the past centuries a major effort was put to make stable and precise oscillators to be used as clock regulators. Here we consider a different class of clocks based on…
Measurements are ordinarily described with respect to absolute "Newtonian" time. In reality however, the switching-on of the measuring device at the instance of the measurement requires a timing device. Hence the classical time $t$ must be…
The role of time in quantum mechanics is discussed. The differences between ordinary observables and an observable which corresponds to the time of an event is examined. In particular, the time-of-arrival of a particle to a fixed location…
The recently introduced concept of an "ideal quantum clock" (IQC) is extended. Especially it is shown that the time operator of an IQC is canonically conjugated to the Hamiltonian of the IQC in a certain pre-Hilbert space. Further it is…
Being able to measure time, whether directly or indirectly, is a significant advantage for an organism. It permits it to predict regular events, and prepare for them on time. Thus, clocks are ubiquitous in biology. In the present paper, we…
Possible theoretical frameworks for measurement of (arrival) time in the nonrelativistic quantum mechanics are reviewed. It is argued that the ambiguity between indirect measurements by a suitably introduced time operator and direct…
We derive the time dilation formula for charged quantum clocks in electromagnetic fields. As a concrete example of non-inertial motion, we consider a cyclotron motion in a uniform magnetic field. Applying the time dilation formula to…
The theory of relativity associates a proper time with each moving object via its world line. In quantum theory however, such well-defined trajectories are forbidden. After introducing a general characterisation of quantum clocks, we…
We investigate an optomechanical system as a model of an autonomous mechanical pendulum clock in the quantum regime, whose operation relies only on incoherent (thermal) resources. The escapement of the clock, the mechanism that translates…