Paolo Tombesi

Optomechanical entanglement between a movable mirror and a cavity field

In this paper we propose an experimental scheme to create and probe optomechanical entanglement between a light field and a mechanical oscillator. This is achieved using a bright laser field that resonates inside a cavity and couples to the position and momentum of a moving (micro)mirror.

Symplectic tomography as classical approach to quantum systems

Abstract By using a generalization of the optical tomography technique we describe the dynamics of a quantum system in terms of equations for a purely classical probability distribution which contains complete information about the system.

Entangling macroscopic oscillators exploiting radiation pressure

It is shown that radiation pressure can be profitably used to entangle macroscopic oscillators like movable mirrors, using present technology. We prove a new sufficient criterion for entanglement and show that the achievable entanglement is robust against thermal noise. Its signature can be revealed using common optomechanical readout apparatus.

Ground-state cooling of a micromechanical oscillator: Comparing cold damping and cavity-assisted cooling schemes

We provide a general framework to describe cooling of a micromechanical oscillator to its quantum ground state by means of radiation-pressure coupling with a driven optical cavity. We apply it to two experimentally realized schemes, back-action cooling via a detuned cavity and cold-damping quantum-feedback cooling, and we determine the ultimate quantum limits of both schemes for the full parameter range of a stable cavity. While both allow one to reach the oscillator’s quantum ground state, we find that back-action cooling is more efficient in the good cavity limit, i.e., when the cavity bandwidth is smaller than the mechanical frequency, while cold damping is more suitable for the bad cavity limit. The results of previous treatments are recovered as limiting cases of specific parameter regimes.

Polarization qubit phase gate in driven atomic media.

We present here an all-optical scheme for the experimental realization of a quantum phase gate. It is based on the polarization degree of freedom of two traveling single-photon wave packets and exploits giant Kerr nonlinearities that can be attained in coherently driven ultracold atomic media.

Wigner function and probability distribution for shifted and squeezed quadratures

The probability distribution for rotated, squeezed and shifted quadratures is shown to be expressed in terms of the Wigner function (as well as in terms of the Q-function and density operator in the coordinate representation). The inverse transformation generalizing the homodyne detection formula is obtained.

Using parity kicks for decoherence control

We show how it is possible to suppress decoherence using tailored external forcing acting as pulses. In the limit of infinitely frequent pulses decoherence and dissipation are completely frozen; however, a significant decoherence suppression is already obtained when the frequency of the pulses is of the order of the reservoir typical frequency scale. This method could be useful in particular to suppress the decoherence of the center-of-mass motion in ion traps.

Polarization phase gate with a tripod atomic system

We analyze the nonlinear optical response of a four-level atomic system driven into a tripod configuration. The large cross-Kerr nonlinearities that occur in such a system are shown to produce nonlinear phase shifts of order

Emergence of atom-light-mirror entanglement inside an optical cavity

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Reversible Optical-to-Microwave Quantum Interface

. Such a substantial shift may be observed in a cold atomic gas in a magneto-optical trap where it could be feasibly exploited towards the realization of a polarization quantum phase gate. The experimental feasibility of such a gate is here examined in detail.