Year: 2014
Type: article
Abstract: Quantum experiments with nanomechanical oscillators are regarded as a test bed for hypothetical modifications of the Schrödinger equation, which predict a breakdown of the superposition principle and induce classical behavior at the macroscale. It is generally believed that the sensitivity to these unconventional effects grows with the mass of the mechanical quantum system. Here we show that the opposite is the case for optomechanical systems in the presence of generic noise sources, such as thermal and measurement noise. We determine conditions for distinguishing these decoherence processes from possible collapse-induced decoherence in continuous optomechanical force measurements.
Source: Physical Review Letters
Institutions: University of Duisburg-Essen, Leibniz University Hannover
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2003680081