Decoherence in a double-slit quantum eraser
Abstract
We study and experimentally implement a double-slit quantum eraser in the presence of a controlled decoherence mechanism. A two-photon state, produced in a spontaneous parametric down conversion process, is prepared in a maximally entangled polarization state. A birefringent double-slit is illuminated by one of the down-converted photons, and it acts as a single-photon two-qubits controlled not gate that couples the polarization with the transversal momentum of these photons. The other photon, that acts as a which-path marker, is sent through a Mach-Zehnder-like interferometer. When the interferometer is partially unbalanced, it behaves as a controlled source of decoherence for polarization states of down-converted photons. We show the transition from wave-like to particle-like behavior of the signal photons crossing the double-slit as a function of the decoherence parameter, which depends on the length path difference at the interferometer.
Cite
@article{arxiv.0911.0330,
title = {Decoherence in a double-slit quantum eraser},
author = {F. A. Torres-Ruiz and G. Lima and A. Delgado and S. Pádua and C. Saavedra},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:0911.0330},
year = {2015}
}
Comments
Accepted in Physical Review A