Year: 2022
Type: article
Abstract: The effective quantum field theory description of gravity, despite its non-renormalizability, allows for predictions beyond classical general relativity. As we enter the age of gravitational wave astronomy, an important and timely question is whether measurable quantum predictions that depart from classical gravity, analogous to quantum optics effects which cannot be explained by classical electrodynamics, can be found. In this work, we investigate quantum signatures in gravitational waves using tools from quantum optics. Squeezed-coherent gravitational waves, which can exhibit sub-Poissonian graviton statistics, can enhance or suppress the signal measured by an interferometer, a characteristic effect of quantum squeezing. Moreover, we show that Gaussian gravitational wave quantum states can be reconstructed from measurements over an ensemble of optical fields interacting with a single copy of the gravitational wave, thus opening the possibility of detecting quantum features of gravity beyond classical general relativity.
Source: Quantum
Authors: Thiago Guerreiro, Francesco Coradeschi, Antonia Micol Frassino, Jennifer Rittenhouse West, Enrico Junior Schioppa
Institutions: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, National Research Council, Institut de Ciències del Cosmos, Universitat de Barcelona, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, University of Salento, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Lecce
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $215
Funders: U.S. Department of Energy, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Office of Science, Nuclear Physics, Laboratory Directed Research and Development, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
OpenAlex ID: W3210528701