Year: 2003
Type: article
Abstract: We analyse the coherence properties of neutron wavepackets, after they have interacted with a phase shifter undergoing different kinds of statistical fluctuation. We give a quantitative (and operational) definition of decoherence and compare it to the standard deviation of the distribution of the phase shifts. We find that in some cases the neutron ensemble is more coherent, even though it has interacted with a wider (i.e. more disordered) distribution of shifts. This feature is independent of the particular definition of decoherence: this is shown by proposing and discussing an alternative definition, based on the Wigner function, that displays a similar behaviour. We briefly discuss the notion of entropy of the shifts and find that, in general, it does not correspond to that of decoherence of the neutron.
Authors: P Facchi, A Mariano, S Pascazio, M Suda
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2098824302