We discuss a device capable of filtering out two-mode states of light with mode populations differing by more than a certain threshold, while not revealing which mode is more populated. It would allow engineering of macroscopic quantum states of light in a way which is preserving specific superpositions. As a result, it would enhance optical phase estimation with these states as well as distinguishability of "macroscopic" qubits. We propose an optical scheme, which is a relatively simple, albeit nonideal, operational implementation of such a filter. It uses tapping of the original polarization two-mode field, with a polarization-neutral beam splitter of low reflectivity. Next, the reflected beams are suitably interfered on a polarizing beam splitter. It is oriented such that it selects unbiased polarization modes with respect to the original ones. The more an incoming two-mode Fock state is unequally populated, the more the polarizing beam-splitter output modes are equally populated. This effect is especially pronounced for highly populated states. Additionally, for such states we expect strong population correlations between the original fields and the tapped one. Thus, after a photon-number measurement of the polarizing beam-splitter outputs, a feed-forward loop can be used to let through a shutter the field, which was transmitted by the tapping beam splitter. This happens only if the counts at the outputs are roughly equal. In such a case, the transmitted field differs strongly in occupation number of the two modes, while information on which mode is more populated is nonexistent (a necessary condition for preserving superpositions).

Quantum steering is a relatively simple test for quantumness of correlations, proving that the values of quantum-mechanical measurement outcomes come into being only in the act of measurement. By exploiting quantum correlations Alice can influence-steer-Bob's physical system in a way inaccessible in classical world, leading to violation of some inequalities. Demonstrating this and similar quantum effects for systems of increasing size, approaching even the classical limit, is a long-standing challenging problem. Here we provide experimentally feasible signature of unbounded violation of a steering inequality. We derive its universal form where tolerance for measurement-setting-errors is explicitly build-in by means of the Deutsch-Maassen-Uffink uncertainty relation. Then, generalizing the mutual unbiasedness, we apply the inequality to the multi-singlet and multi-particle bipartite Bell-state. However, the method is general and opens the possibility of employing multi-particle bi-partite steering for randomness certification and development of quantum technologies, e.g. random access codes. In their famous paper, Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen (EPR) highlighted the phenomenon of entanglement [1]: it is possible to see perfect correlations between measurement outcomes obtained by two observers, Alice and Bob, at distant locations, while for each observer his/her outcomes appear to be statistically random. These are the EPR correlations. Validation of entanglement requires designing a specific experimental scenario where measurements on a quantum state give outcomes which violate a classical inequality. The inequality can be constructed , for example, on the basis of probability distribution satisfying the Kolmogorov axioms. Its unbounded violation is equivalent to observation of the EPR correlations which become more and more pronounced when size of a system increases, reaching even classical limit of macroscopic population. This is very challenging to accomplish in the paradigm of Bell-nonlocality testing: if specific observables with (2 log 2 d) d settings and d possible outcomes are used, bipartite quantum states with local Hilbert space dimension d can violate a Bell inequality by a factor of O √ d log 2 d [2], later improved to O √ d log d [3-5]. Thus, an unbounded violation of a Bell inequality requires exponentially many observables (or equivalently, settings). According to the monogamy relation [6], this scaling can be improved only up to the linear one (see the Supplementary Information). How-* present results are still far from this limit and this makes them purely academic as far as the experimental perspective is concerned [7]. In case of quantum steering, the task has been found to be less difficult: violation of a steering inequality by a factor of O √ d requires d + 1 observables in the form of mutually unbiased bases (MUBs) [8]. However, this scenario necessitates the complementarity relation among the bases to be fulfilled exactly, which is experimentally impossible to attain. Here we provide a gen...

Quantum phenomena such as entanglement can improve fundamental limits on the sensitivity of a measurement probe. In optical interferometry, a probe consisting of N entangled photons provides up to a $$\sqrt{N}$$ N enhancement in phase sensitivity compared to a classical probe of the same energy. Here, we employ high-gain parametric down-conversion sources and photon-number-resolving detectors to perform interferometry with heralded quantum probes of sizes up to N = 8 (i.e. measuring up to 16-photon coincidences). Our probes are created by injecting heralded photon-number states into an interferometer, and in principle provide quantum-enhanced phase sensitivity even in the presence of significant optical loss. Our work paves the way toward quantum-enhanced interferometry using large entangled photonic states.

Quantum correlations may violate the Bell inequalities. Most experimental schemes confirming this prediction have been realized in all-optical Bell tests suffering from the detection loophole. Experiments which simultaneously close this loophole and the locality loophole are highly desirable and remain challenging. An approach to loophole-free Bell tests is based on amplification of the entangled photons (i.e., on macroscopic entanglement), for which an optical signal should be easy to detect. However, the macroscopic states are partially indistinguishable by classical detectors. An interesting idea to overcome these limitations is to replace the postselection by an appropriate preselection immediately after the amplification. This is in the spirit of state preprocessing revealing hidden nonlocality. Here, we examine one of the possible preselections, but the presented tools can be used for analysis of other schemes. Filtering methods making the macroscopic entanglement useful for Bell tests and quantum protocols are the subject of an intensive study in the field nowadays.

Can a Bell test with no detection loophole be demonstrated for multiphoton entangled states of light within the current technology? We examine the possibility of a postselection-free Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt (CHSH)-Bell inequality test with an unsymmetrical polarization singlet. To that end we employ a preselection procedure which is performed prior to the test. It allows using imperfect (coarse-grained) binary photodetection in the test. We show an example of a preselection scheme which improves violation of the CHSH inequality with the micro-macro polarization singlet produced by the optimal quantum cloning. The preselection is realized by a quantum filter which is believed not to be useful for this purpose

It is an open question how fast information processing can be performed and whether quantum effects can speed up the best existing solutions. Signal extraction, analysis, and compression in diagnostics, astronomy, chemistry, and broadcasting build on the discrete Fourier transform. It is implemented with the fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm that assumes a periodic input of specific lengths, which rarely holds true. A lesser-known transform, the Kravchuk-Fourier (KT), allows one to operate on finite strings of arbitrary length. It is of high demand in digital image processing and computer vision but features a prohibitive runtime. Here, we report a one-step computation of a fractional quantum KT. The quantum d-nary (qudit) architecture we use comprises only one gate and offers processing time independent of the input size. The gate may use a multiphoton Hong-Ou-Mandel effect. Existing quantum technologies may scale it up toward diverse applications.

No abstract

Quantum simulations are becoming an essential tool for studying complex phenomena, e.g. quantum topology, quantum information transfer and relativistic wave equations, beyond the limitations of analytical computations and experimental observations. To date, the primary resources used in proof-of-principle experiments are collections of qubits, coherent states or multiple single-particle Fock states. Here we show a quantum simulation performed using genuine higher-order Fock states, with two or more indistinguishable particles occupying the same bosonic mode. This was implemented by interfering pairs of Fock states with up to five photons on an interferometer, and measuring the output states with photon-number-resolving detectors. Already this resource-efficient demonstration reveals topological matter, simulates non-linear systems and elucidates a perfect quantum transfer mechanism which can be used to transport Majorana fermions.