Simultaneous retrodiction of multimode optomechanical systems using matched filters

Abstract

Generation and manipulation of many-body entangled states is of considerable interest, for applications in quantum simulation or sensing, for example. Measurement and verification of the resulting many-body state presents a formidable challenge, however, which can be simplified by multiplexed readout using shared measurement resources. In this work, we analyze and demonstrate state retrodiction for a system of optomechanical oscillators coupled to a single-mode optical cavity. Coupling to the shared cavity field facilitates simultaneous optical measurement of the oscillators' transient dynamics at distinct frequencies. Optimal estimators for the oscillators' initial state can be defined as a set of linear matched filters, derived from a detailed model for the detected homodyne signal. We find that the optimal state estimate for optomechanical retrodiction is obtained from high-cooperativity measurements, reaching estimate sensitivity at the Standard Quantum Limit (SQL). Simultaneous estimation of the state of multiple oscillators places additional limits on the estimate precision, due to the diffusive noise each oscillator adds to the optomechanical signal. However, we show that the sensitivity of simultaneous multi-mode state retrodiction reaches the SQL for sufficiently well-resolved oscillators. Finally, an experimental demonstration of two-mode retrodiction is presented, which requires further accounting for technical fluctuations of the oscillator frequency.