QUANTUM PHYSICS

WHAT EVERYONE NEEDS TO KNOW

MICHAEL G. RAYMER

OXFORD
UNTV-EJLSITY PKXSS
 CONTENTS

PREFACE xvii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xxi

A NOTE FOR EXPERTS ABOUT LANGUAGE xxiii

1. Quantum Physics 1

What is quantum physics? 1

How does quantum physics affect everyday life? 3

What is a physics theory and what is the program of physics? 4

Why do we use the word 'model' when referring to physics? 5

Why was 2015 an especially good year for quantum physics? 6

Why are some objects well described by classical physics models

whereas others require a quantum physics description? 7

What are the elementary entities that make up the physical universe? 9

How is light different in classical and quantum descriptions? 11

What are consequences of the discreteness of light detection? 12

Is it possible to create and detect exactly one photon ? 14

How was quantum physics discovered? 15

Do electromagnetic fields have a quantum nature? 18

Notes 20

Further Reading 21
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2. Quantum Measurement and Its Consequences 22

What is measurement in classical physics? 22

What is light polarization? 23

How do we determine or measure light polarization? 24

What happens if the light contains a mixture of polarizations? 27

What happens if the light is purely polarized other than H or V? 28

What is the physics behind these polarization measurement results? 30

What is coherence and what role does it play? 31

Can we measure the polarization of a single photon? 33

How can we prepare a photon with a particular pure polarization? 35

Can you determine the polarization of a single photon by

quantum measurement? 35

What is the difference between the classical and quantum concepts

of polarization of light? 36

How do we predict probabilities for photon polarization

measurements? 37

What does it mean to make a measurement in the quantum realm? 41

What is measurement complementarity? 42

How can a human-scale object seem to possess definite properties

if the individual quantum objects making it up do not? 44

What do we mean by the state of an object? 45

What is a quantum state? 46

Can Bob determine a quantum state experimentally that was

prepared by Alice? 43
Can Bob make copies (clones) of the state of a single photon? 49
What is quantum coherence? 50

What are the Guiding Principles of quantum mechanics? 50

What does quantum mechanics really describe? 52

Notes 53

3. Application: Quantum Data Encryption 54

Can quantum physics be harnessed to create perfectly secure
Internet communication ? 54
 Contents ix

How does encryption keep messages secret? 54

Can most encryption methods typically be cracked? 55

Is there an encryption method that cannot be cracked? 56

How is text represented using binary symbols? 57

How is a text message encrypted and decrypted using a binary key? 58

How can photon polarization be used for creating secure

encryption keys? 59

What physics principles underlie quantum key distribution? 59

How does quantum key distribution work? 62

What if an eavesdropper is present? 64

How can Alice and Bob detect Eve's presence? 66

What if Eve is always present? 67

Could Eve devise other, better eavesdropping schemes? 69

What is the current status of quantum key distribution? 69

Further Reading 69

4. Quantum Behavior and Its Description 70

How do quantum objects behave in the absence of measurement? 70

How do electrons and pinballs behave differently? 70

Why does the electron always go toward the goat? 72

What happens if we modify the setup? 73

What if we block one path? 74

What can we conclude so far? 75

Can we measure which way the electron travels? 75

Why can't we apply this same reasoning to the pinball? 77

What is unitary behavior? 77

What other examples of unitary processes illustrate the main points? 79

What are additional consequences of a process being unitary? 80

Can matter behave the same as photons in the two-path experiment? 82

Can a photon sometimes behave according to classical probability? 84

How can we summarize the previous considerations as a principle

of physics? 85
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What is a measurement in quantum physics? 86

Can a quantum object exist in two places at once? 86

How does quantum key distribution make use of unitary processes? 87

How does quantum theory describe states in which two

possibilities exist? 87

How does quantum theory describe an electron having two

possible paths? 88

Can arrows be used to represent the state of macroscopic objects? 90

How are outcome probabilities related to possibilities? 91

How can an electron be split into two possible paths? 92

How are state arrows used to find probabilities when path

interference occurs? 93

What happens if we alter one of the paths? 95

How can we summarize the previous ideas in a Guiding Principle? 96

What if we change the path length even more? 96

Is there a general principle we can infer from this experiment? 100

What are the take-away messages from this chapter? 101

Notes 103

5. Application: Sensing Gravity with

Quantum Interference 104
What is the technology of sensing? 104

Why is sensing the strength of gravity useful? 105

How can quantum physics be used to sense gravity? 105

How is this interferometer different from the one discussed in

the previous chapter? tog

Is this apparatus a practical gravity sensor? 109

Figure Notes iqq

6. Quantum Possibilities and Waves 11 o

How does the concept of waves enter quantum theory? 110

What are waves? 110

What is wave interference? 113

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What are quantum possibility waves? 114

How does a psi wave keep track of its internal timing? 115

What sets the cycle time or ticking rate of a particle's

internal clock? 116

How can we assemble our Guiding Principles into a coherent

quantum theory? 118

What is momentum and what can change it? 119

What is energy? 120

How does Schrddinger's equation describe quantum objects

moving through space? 121

How is the quantum wave related to probability? 123

What is an example of Schrddinger's equation in action ? 124

How does a quantum particle get through locations of

zero probability? 127

What is Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle? 127

Is it correct to say an electron is both a particle and a wave? 130

Notes 130

7. Milestones and a Fork in the Road 131

What aspects of quantum physics have we seen so far, and

what topics should we discuss next? 131

What milestones have we passed so far? 132

Note 137

8. Bell-Tests and the End of Local Realism 138

Can experiments probe the nature of reality? 138

What is correlation and what does it tell us? 139

What is an example of correlated properties? 140

What is an example of correlated behaviors? 141

How can correlations be quantified? 142

What is the difference between classical correlation and

quantum correlation? 146

What is realism and how can we test it experimentally? 147

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Setting the stage for experimental tests

of realism 148

What if we can make only partial measurements? 151

What prevents communication between the two sides of

the experiment? 153

What is Local Realism? 156

What kinds of experiments can put an end to Local Realism? 156

Would all states of light emitted by the atoms produce this

same result? 163

Are there possible flaws or loopholes in our arguments? 164

What experiments have overcome the potential flaws? 165

How can we be sure the measurement settings are independent? 166

What did John Bell make of the results of such experiments? 167

Does the breakdown of Local Realism mean we must abandon

classical intuition and classical physics altogether? 168

Should we abandon Local Causality or Local Realism, or both ? 168

Figure Notes 169

Notes 169

9. Quantum Entanglement and Teleportation 171

What is quantum entanglement? 171

How do we represent the state of a composite entity? 172

How do we represent an entangled state of a pair of photons? 174

How can we make the Bell State for a photon pair? 175

How does the entangled Bell State violate Local Realism? 177

What can you know about the constituents of a quantum

composite object? 178

What does it mean in practice to know everything there is to know

about a composite quantum entity? / 79

What can we accomplish using entanglement that we couldn't

without it? 181

How does entanglement enable quantum state teleportation? 182

Does what happens on Alice's side affect what happens on Bob's side? 185

Is quantum teleportation instantaneous? 186

Can a human be teleported? 186

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What is quantum state teleportation good for? 187

Notes 188

10. Application: Quantum Computing 189

Is information physical? 189

What is a computer? 190

How do computers work? 191

How small can a single logic gate be? 194

Can we create computers that use intrinsically quantum behavior? 195

What is a qubit? 196

What physical principles set classical and quantum computers apart? 197

What logic gates would quantum computers use? 198

How would quantum computers operate? 201

Why is factoring numbers difficult? 204

How could quantum computers solve the factoring problem? 207

What other computer science problems could quantum

computers solve? 208

Which physics and chemistry problems could quantum

computers solve? 210

Why are quantum computers so hard to make? 213

What are the prospects for building quantum computers? 214

What are the promising approaches to building

quantum computers? 215

Further Reading 217

Notes 217

11. Energy Quantization and Atoms 218

What is energy quantization in quantum mechanics? 218

Why is energy quantized when a particle is confined? 218

How is the energy of an electron in an atom quantized? 221

Why can't the electron come to rest at the bottom of the valley? 223

How does an atom absorb light? 224

How does an atom emit light? 227

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What has become of the classical physics idea that an electron in

an atom orbits around the nucleus? 228

What do electron psi waves look like in three dimensions? 230

Note 230

12. Application: Sensing Time, Motion, and

Gravity with Quantum Technology 231

What are quantum physics-based sensing technologies? 231

What is a scientific definition of time? 231

What is a clock? 232

How can we make clocks identical? 233

Why do elementary quantum objects make the most

perfect clocks? 234

Why are good clocks technologically important? 235

How precise are today's atomic clocks? 236

How do basic atomic clocks work? 237

How do the most advanced atomic clocks work? 239

What are inertia! sensors? 241

What is an accelerometer? 242

How do conventional accelerometers work? 243

What are accelerometers good for? 243

What are gravimeters and what are they used for? 244

How do conventional gravimeters work? 244

How does a basic quantum gravimeter work? 245

How do advanced quantum gravimeters work? 246

Can atomic interferometers detect gravitational waves? 250

Figure Note 252

Notes 252

13. Quantum Fields and Their Excitations 253

What are classical particles and fields? 253
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What quantum physics principle unifies the concepts of particles

and fields? 255

What happens if we measure a quantum field? 257

How does the quantum theory of a grid apply to light? 259

What is a quantum field? 260

What is a photon? 261

Are particles and fields aspects of the same thing? 262

Does the unification of fields and particles also apply to electrons? 262

Why don't we see ordinary objects appearing and disappearing? 264

What is the universe made of? 264

What is the quantum vacuum? 265

How did the elementary particles get their mass? 267

What other facts speak in favor of the existence of quantum fields? 268

Does an understanding of quantum fields remove the mystery of

Bell correlations? 271

Does an understanding of quantum fields remove the mystery of

quantum measurement? 271

Why is the discussion of quantum fields postponed to near the end

of this book? 272

Notes 272

14. Future Directions and Remaining Questions

in Quantum Science 274

What is needed to make further progress? 274

What don't we know about quantum technology? 276

What don't we know about quantum physics? 277

What do we understand about the quantum aspects of Nature? 277

How do the classical and quantum descriptions of Nature differ? 278

What challenges remain in understanding quantum theory? 279

What is the measurement problem? 280

How can an entangled state be updated? 282

Does Heisenberg's view solve the measurement problem ? 284

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How does decoherence help? 288

Is decoherence sufficient? 289

Is quantum probability personal? 290

Is it all in my head? 293

Coherence forever? 295

Why do the Bell correlations occur? 300

Notes 301

INDEX