Some physical objects are hardly accessible to direct experimentation. It is then desirable to infer their properties based solely on the interactions they have with systems over which we have control. In this spirit, here we introduce schemes for assessing the non-classicality of the inaccessible objects as characterised by quantum discord. We consider two probes individually interacting with the inaccessible object, but not with each other. The schemes are based on monitoring entanglement dynamics between the probes. Our method is robust and experimentally friendly as it allows the probes and the object to be open systems, makes no assumptions about the initial state, dimensionality of involved Hilbert spaces and details of the probe-object Hamiltonian. We apply our scheme to a membrane-in-the-middle optomechanical system, to detect system-environment correlations in open system dynamics as well as non-classicality of the environment, and we foresee potential benefits for the inference of the non-classical nature of gravity.What should be known about an inaccessible object to conclude that it is "not classical"? Here we show, inspired by quantum communication scenarios, that it is sufficient to verify whether such object can be used to increase quantum entanglement between remote probeparticles that individually interact with it, but are not directly coupled to each other.Specifically, we prove that such gain in quantum entanglement is only possible if, during its evolution, the object shares with the probes quantum correlations in the form of quantum discord [1][2][3][4][5]. In turn, the presence of quantum discord between the probes and the object entails a non-classical feature of the object itself. According to the definition of discord, two or more subsystems share quantum correlations if there is no von Neumann measurement on one of them that keeps the total state unchanged. This can only happen when non-orthogonal (indistinguishable) states are involved in the description of the physical configuration of the measured subsystem. This indistinguishability is the non-classical feature that we aim to detect. We formulate analytical criteria revealing such non-classicality based on operations performed only on the probes, and without any detailed modelling of the inaccessible object in question.We emphasise that the non-classicality is revealed under a set of minimal assumptions. Namely: (i) The object may remain inaccessible at all times, i.e. it needs not be directly measured. In particular its quantum state and Hilbert space dimension can remain unknown throughout the whole assessment. Our method is thus valid when the object is an elementary system or an arbitrarily complex one; (ii) The details of the interaction between the object and the probes may also remain unspecified; (iii) Every party can be open to its own local environment. These properties make our method applicable to a large number of experimentally relevant situations.We demonstrate the revealing power of our criteria for non-classicality ...
No experiment to date provided evidence for quantum features of the gravitational interaction. Recently proposed tests suggest looking for the generation of quantum entanglement between massive objects as a possible route towards the observation of such features. Motivated by advances in optical cooling of mirrors, here we provide systematic study of entanglement between two masses that are coupled gravitationally. We first consider the masses trapped at all times in harmonic potentials (optomechanics) and then masses released from the traps. This leads to the estimate of the experimental parameters required for the observation of gravitationally-induced entanglement. The optomechanical setup demands LIGO-like mirrors and squeezing or long coherence times, but the released masses can be light and accumulate detectable entanglement in a timescale shorter than their decoherence times. No macroscopic quantum superposition develops during the evolution. We discuss the implications from such thought experiments regarding the nature of the gravitational coupling.arXiv:1906.08808v1 [quant-ph]
We classify protocols of entanglement distribution as excessive and non-excessive ones. In a non-excessive protocol, the gain of entanglement is bounded by the amount of entanglement being communicated between the remote parties, while excessive protocols violate such bound. We first present examples of excessive protocols that achieve a significant entanglement gain. Next we consider their use in noisy scenarios, showing that they improve entanglement achieved in other ways and for some situations excessive distribution is the only possibility of gaining entanglement.
Quantum computers require precise control over parameters and careful engineering of the underlying physical system. In contrast, neural networks have evolved to tolerate imprecision and inhomogeneity. Here, using a reservoir computing architecture we show how a random network of quantum nodes can be used as a robust hardware for quantum computing. Our network architecture induces quantum operations by optimising only a single layer of quantum nodes, a key advantage over the traditional neural networks where many layers of neurons have to be optimised. We demonstrate how a single network can induce different quantum gates, including a universal gate set. Moreover, in the few-qubit regime, we show that sequences of multiple quantum gates in quantum circuits can be compressed with a single operation, potentially reducing the operation time and complexity. As the key resource is a random network of nodes, with no specific topology or structure, this architecture is a hardware friendly alternative paradigm for quantum computation.
Recent experiments have demonstrated strong coupling between living bacteria and light. Here we propose a scheme capable of revealing non-classical features of the bacteria (quantum discord of light-bacteria correlations) without exact modelling of the organisms and their interactions with external world. The scheme puts the bacteria in a role of mediators of quantum entanglement between otherwise non-interacting probing light modes. We then propose a plausible model of this experiment, using recently achieved parameters, demonstrating the feasibility of the scheme. Within this model we find that the steady state entanglement between the probes, which does not depend on the initial conditions, is accompanied by entanglement between the probes and bacteria, and provides independent evidence of the strong coupling between them. arXiv:1711.06485v2 [quant-ph]
Quantum entanglement is a form of correlation between quantum particles that cannot be increased via local operations and classical communication. It has therefore been proposed that an increment of quantum entanglement between probes that are interacting solely via a mediator implies non-classicality of the mediator. Indeed, under certain assumptions regarding the initial state, entanglement gain between the probes indicates quantum coherence in the mediator. Going beyond such assumptions, there exist other initial states which produce entanglement between the probes via only local interactions with a classical mediator. In this process the initial entanglement between any probe and the rest of the system "flows through" the classical mediator and gets localised between the probes. Here we theoretically characterise maximal entanglement gain via classical mediator and experimentally demonstrate, using liquid-state NMR spectroscopy, the optimal growth of quantum correlations between two nuclear spin qubits interacting through a mediator qubit in a classical state. We additionally monitor, i.e., dephase, the mediator in order to emphasise its classical character. Our results indicate the necessity of verifying features of the initial state if entanglement gain between the probes is used as a figure of merit for witnessing non-classical mediator. Such methods were proposed to have exemplary applications in quantum optomechanics, quantum biology and quantum gravity.
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