Time-energy Uncertainty Research Articles

Energy-Time Uncertainty Relations in Quantum Measurements

Quantum measurement is a physical process. A system and an apparatus interact for a certain time period (measurement time), and during this interaction, information about an observable is transferred from the system to the apparatus. In this study, we quantify the energy fluctuation of the quantum apparatus required for this physical process to occur autonomously. We first examine the so-called standard model of measurement, which is free from any non-trivial energy-time uncertainty relation, to find that it needs an external system that switches on the interaction between the system and the apparatus. In such a sense this model is not closed. Therefore to treat a measurement process in a fully quantum manner we need to consider a "larger" quantum apparatus which works also as a timing device switching on the interaction. In this setting we prove that a trade-off relation (energy-time uncertainty relation), $\tau\cdot \Delta H_A \geq \frac{\pi \hbar}{4}$, holds between the energy fluctuation $\Delta H_A$ of the quantum apparatus and the measurement time $\tau$. We use this trade-off relation to discuss the spacetime uncertainty relation concerning the operational meaning of the microscopic structure of spacetime. In addition, we derive another trade-off inequality between the measurement time and the strength of interaction between the system and the apparatus.

Generalized Geometric Quantum Speed Limits

The attempt to gain a theoretical understanding of the concept of time in quantum mechanics has triggered significant progress towards the search for faster and more efficient quantum technologies. One of such advances consists in the interpretation of the time-energy uncertainty relations as lower bounds for the minimal evolution time between two distinguishable states of a quantum system, also known as quantum speed limits. We investigate how the non uniqueness of a bona fide measure of distinguishability defined on the quantum state space affects the quantum speed limits and can be exploited in order to derive improved bounds. Specifically, we establish an infinite family of quantum speed limits valid for unitary and nonunitary evolutions, based on an elegant information geometric formalism. Our work unifies and generalizes existing results on quantum speed limits, and provides instances of novel bounds which are tighter than any established one based on the conventional quantum Fisher information. We illustrate our findings with relevant examples, demonstrating the importance of choosing different information metrics for open system dynamics, as well as clarifying the roles of classical populations versus quantum coherences, in the determination and saturation of the speed limits. Our results can find applications in the optimization and control of quantum technologies such as quantum computation and metrology, and might provide new insights in fundamental investigations of quantum thermodynamics.

On the Remarkable Features of the Lower Limits of Charge and the Radiated Energy of Antennas as Predicted by Classical Electrodynamics

Electromagnetic energy radiated by antennas working in both the frequency domain and time domain is studied as a function of the charge associated with the current in the antenna. The frequency domain results, obtained under the assumption of sinusoidal current distribution, show that, for a given charge, the energy radiated within a period of oscillation increases initially with L/λ and then starts to oscillate around a steady value when L/λ > 1. The results show that for the energy radiated by the antenna to be equal to or larger than the energy of one photon, the oscillating charge in the antenna has to be equal to or larger than the electronic charge. That is, U ≥ hν or UT ≥ h ⇒ q ≥ e, where U is the energy dissipated over a period, ν is the frequency of oscillation, T is the period, h is Planck’s constant, q is the rms value of the oscillating charge, and e is the electronic charge. In the case of antennas working in the time domain, it is observed that UΔt ≥ h/4π ⇒ q ≥ e, where U is the total energy radiated, Δt is the time over which the energy is radiated, and q is the charge transported by the current. It is shown that one can recover the time–energy uncertainty principle of quantum mechanics from this time domain result. The results presented in this paper show that when quantum mechanical constraints are applied to the electromagnetic energy radiated by a finite antenna as estimated using the equations of classical electrodynamics, the electronic charge emerges as the smallest unit of free charge in nature.

Interference Energy Spectrum of the Infinite Square Well

Certain superposition states of the 1-D infinite square well have transient zeros at locations other than the nodes of the eigenstates that comprise them. It is shown that if an infinite potential barrier is suddenly raised at some or all of these zeros, the well can be split into multiple adjacent infinite square wells without affecting the wavefunction. This effects a change of the energy eigenbasis of the state to a basis that does not commute with the original, and a subsequent measurement of the energy now reveals a completely different spectrum, which we call the interference energy spectrum of the state. This name is appropriate because the same splitting procedure applied at the stationary nodes of any eigenstate does not change the measurable energy of the state. Of particular interest, this procedure can result in measurable energies that are greater than the energy of the highest mode in the original superposition, raising questions about the conservation of energy akin to those that have been raised in the study of superoscillations. An analytic derivation is given for the interference spectrum of a given wavefunction Ψ ( x , t ) with N known zeros located at points s i = ( x i , t i ) . Numerical simulations were used to verify that a barrier can be rapidly raised at a zero of the wavefunction without significantly affecting it. The interpretation of this result with respect to the conservation of energy and the energy-time uncertainty relation is discussed, and the idea of alternate energy eigenbases is fleshed out. The question of whether or not a preferred discrete energy spectrum is an inherent feature of a particle’s quantum state is examined.

Tunneling time in attosecond experiments, intrinsic-type of time. Keldysh, and Mandelstam–Tamm time

Tunneling time in attosecond and strong-field experiments is one of the most controversial issues in current research, because of its importance to the theory of time, the time operator and the time–energy uncertainty relation in quantum mechanics. In Kullie (2015 Phys. Rev. A 92 052118) we derived an estimation of the (real) tunneling time, which shows an excellent agreement with the time measured in attosecond experiments, our derivation is found by utilizing the time–energy uncertainty relation, and it represents a quantum clock. In this work, we show different aspects of the tunneling time in attosecond experiments, we discuss and compare the different views and approaches, which are used to calculate the tunneling time, i.e. Keldysh time (as a real or imaginary quantity), Mandelstam–Tamm time, the classical view of the time measurement and our tunneling time relation(s). We draw some conclusions concerning the validity and the relation between the different types of the tunneling time with the hope that they will help to answer the question put forward by Orlando et al (2014 J. Phys. B 47 204002, 2014 Phys. Rev. A 89 014102): tunneling time, what does it mean? However, as we will see, the important question is a more general one: how to understand the time and the measurement of the time of a quantum system? In respect to our result, the time in quantum mechanics can be, in more general fashion, classified in two types, intrinsic dynamically connected, and external dynamically not connected to the system, and consequently (perhaps only) classical Newtonian time remains as a parametric type of time.

Energy-Time Uncertainty Principle and Lower Bounds on Sojourn Time

One manifestation of quantum resonances is a large sojourn time, or autocorrelation, for states which are initially localized. We elaborate on Lavine's time-energy uncertainty principle and give an estimate on the sojourn time. For the case of perturbed embedded eigenstates the bound is explicit and involves Fermi's Golden Rule. It is valid for a very general class of systems. We illustrate the theory by applications to resonances for time dependent systems including the AC Stark effect as well as multistate systems.

Entropy, energy and temperature–length inequality for Friedmann universes

In this paper, we continue the study of the physical consequences of our modified black hole entropy formula in expanding spacetimes. In particular, we apply the new formula to apparent horizons of Friedmann expanding universes with zero, negative and positive spatial curvature. As a first result, we found that apart from the static Einstein solution, the only Friedmann spacetimes with constant (zero) internal energy are the ones with zero spatial curvature. This happens because, in the computation of the internal energy [Formula: see text], the contribution due to the nonvanishing Hubble flow must be added to the usual Misner–Sharp energy giving, for zero curvature spacetimes, a zero value for [Formula: see text]. This fact does not hold when curvature is present. After analyzing the free energy [Formula: see text], we obtain the correct result that [Formula: see text] is stationary only for physical systems in isothermal equilibrium, i.e. a de Sitter expanding universe. This result permits us to trace back a physically reasonable hypothesis concerning the origin of the early and late times de Sitter phase of our universe. Finally, we deduce an interesting temperature–length inequality similar to the time–energy uncertainty of ordinary quantum mechanics but with temperature instead of time coordinate. Remarkably, this relation is independent of the gravitational constant [Formula: see text] and can thus be explored also in nongravitational contexts.

Singularity of the time-energy uncertainty in adiabatic perturbation and cycloids on a Bloch sphere.

Adiabatic perturbation is shown to be singular from the exact solution of a spin-1/2 particle in a uniformly rotating magnetic field. Due to a non-adiabatic effect, its quantum trajectory on a Bloch sphere is a cycloid traced by a circle rolling along an adiabatic path. As the magnetic field rotates more and more slowly, the time-energy uncertainty, proportional to the length of the quantum trajectory, calculated by the exact solution is entirely different from the one obtained by the adiabatic path traced by the instantaneous eigenstate. However, the non-adiabatic Aharonov- Anandan geometric phase, measured by the area enclosed by the exact path, approaches smoothly the adiabatic Berry phase, proportional to the area enclosed by the adiabatic path. The singular limit of the time-energy uncertainty and the regular limit of the geometric phase are associated with the arc length and arc area of the cycloid on a Bloch sphere, respectively. Prolate and curtate cycloids are also traced by different initial states outside and inside of the rolling circle, respectively. The axis trajectory of the rolling circle, parallel to the adiabatic path, is shown to be an example of transitionless driving. The non-adiabatic resonance is visualized by the number of cycloid arcs.

Enhanced violation of the Collins-Gisin-Linden-Massar-Popescu inequality with optimized time-bin-entangled ququarts

High-dimensional quantum entanglement is drawing attention because it enables us to perform quantum information tasks that are robust against noises. To test the nonlocality of entangled qudits, the Collins-Gisin-Linden-Massar-Popescu (CGLMP) inequality has been proposed and demonstrated using qudits based on orbital angular momentum, time-energy uncertainty, and frequency bins. Here, we report the generation and observation of time-bin entangled ququarts. We implemented a measurement for the CGLMP inequality test using cascaded delay Mach-Zehnder interferometers fabricated by using planar lightwave circuit technology, with which we achieved a precise and stable measurement for time-bin-entangled ququarts. In addition, we generated an optimized entangled state by modulating the pump pulse intensities, with which we can observe the theoretical maximum violation for the CGLMP inequality test. As a result, we successfully observed a Bell-type parameter $S_4 = 2.774 \pm 0.025$ violating the CGLMP inequality for the maximally entangled state and an enhanced Bell-type parameter $S_4 = 2.913 \pm 0.023$ for the optimized entangled state.

The Deep Physics Hidden within the Field Expressions of the Radiation Fields of Lightning Return Strokes

Based on the electromagnetic fields generated by a current pulse propagating from one point in space to another, a scenario that is frequently used to simulate return strokes in lightning flashes, it is shown that there is a deep physical connection between the electromagnetic energy dissipated by the system, the time over which this energy is dissipated and the charge associated with the current. For a given current pulse, the product of the energy dissipated and the time over which this energy is dissipated, defined as action in this paper, depends on the length of the channel, or the path, through which the current pulse is propagating. As the length of the channel varies, the action plotted against the length of the channel exhibits a maximum value. The location of the maximum value depends on the ratio of the length of the channel to the characteristic length of the current pulse. The latter is defined as the product of the duration of the current pulse and the speed of propagation of the current pulse. The magnitude of this maximum depends on the charge associated with the current pulse. The results show that when the charge associated with the current pulse approaches the electronic charge, the value of this maximum reaches a value close to h/8π where h is the Plank constant. From this result, one can deduce that the time-energy uncertainty principle is the reason for the fact that the smallest charge that can be detected from the electromagnetic radiation is equal to the electronic charge. Since any system that generates electromagnetic radiation can be represented by a current pulse propagating from one point in space to another, the result is deemed valid for electromagnetic radiation fields in general.

Tunneling time in attosecond experiments and the time-energy uncertainty relation

In this work we present a theoretical model supported with a physical reasoning leading to a relation which performs an excellent estimation for the tunneling time in attosecond and strong field experiments, where we address the important case of the He-atom \cite{Eckle:2008s,Eckle:2008}. Our tunneling time estimation is found by utilizing the time-energy uncertainty relation and represents a quantum clock. The tunneling time is also featured as the time of passage (at the exit of the tunnel) similarly to the Einstein's {\it photon box Gedanken experiment}. Our work tackles an important study case for the theory of time in quantum mechanics and is very promising for the search for a (general) time operator in quantum mechanics. The work can be seen as a new fundamental step in dealing with the tunneling time in strong field and ultra-fast science, and is appealing for more elaborate treatments using quantum wave packet dynamics and especially for complex atoms and molecules.

Survival Probability of the Néel State in Clean and Disordered Systems: An Overview

In this work we provide an overview of our recent results about the quench dynamics of one-dimensional many-body quantum systems described by spin-1/2 models. To illustrate those general results, here we employ a particular and experimentally accessible initial state, namely the N\'eel state. Both cases are considered: clean chains without any disorder and disordered systems with static random on-site magnetic fields. The quantity used for the analysis is the probability for finding the initial state later in time, the so-called survival probability. At short times, the survival probability may decay faster than exponentially, Gaussian behaviors and even the limit established by the energy-time uncertainty relation are displayed. The dynamics at long times slows down significantly and shows a powerlaw behavior. For both scenarios, we provide analytical expressions that agree very well with our numerical results.

The quantum emission spectra of rapidly-rotating Kerr black holes: Discrete or continuous?

Bekenstein and Mukhanov (BM) have suggested that, in a quantum theory of gravity, black holes may have discrete emission spectra. Using the time-energy uncertainty principle they have also shown that, for a (non-rotating) Schwarzschild black hole, the natural broadening δω of the black-hole emission lines is expected to be small on the scale set by the characteristic frequency spacing Δω of the spectral lines: ζSch≡δω/Δω≪1. BM have therefore concluded that the expected discrete emission lines of the quantized Schwarzschild black hole are unlikely to overlap. In this paper we calculate the characteristic dimensionless ratio ζ(a¯)≡δω/Δω for the predicted BM emission spectra of rapidly-rotating Kerr black holes (here a¯≡J/M2 is the dimensionless angular momentum of the black hole). It is shown that ζ(a¯) is an increasing function of the black-hole angular momentum. In particular, we find that the quantum emission lines of Kerr black holes in the regime a¯≳0.9 are characterized by the dimensionless ratio ζ(a¯)≳1 and are therefore effectively blended together. Our results thus suggest that, even if the underlying mass (energy) spectrum of these rapidly-rotating Kerr black holes is fundamentally discrete as suggested by Bekenstein and Mukhanov, the natural broadening phenomenon (associated with the time-energy uncertainty principle) is expected to smear the black-hole radiation spectrum into a continuum.

Time scales at quantum phase transitions in the Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model

We report on quantum revivals and classical periodicities of wave packets centered around the ground state within the Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model. Special attention is paid to the behavior at first- and second-order phase transitions. In line with previous studies, we find that away from criticality, characteristic times exhibit smooth, nonsingular behavior, but upon approaching the transition points they diverge as power laws with associated critical exponents. Finite-size effects are studied and the observed phenomenology is discussed in the framework of the time-energy uncertainty relation.

Implementation of a Quantized Line Element in Klein-Gordon and Dirac Fields

In this paper an ansatz that the anti-commutation rules hold only as integrated average over time intervals and not at every instant giving rise to a time-discrete form of Klein-Gordon equation is examined. This coarse-grained validation of the anti-commutation rules enables us to show that the relativistic energy-momentum relation holds only over discrete time intervals, fitting well with the time-energy uncertainty relation. When this time-discrete scheme is applied to four vector notations in relativity, the line-element can be quantized and thereby how the physical attributes associated with time, space and matter can be quantized is sketched. This potentially enables us to discuss the Zeno’s arrow paradox within the classical limit. As the solutions of the Dirac equation can be used to construct solutions to the Klein-Gordon equation, this temporal quantization rule is applied to the Dirac equation and the solutions associated with the Dirac equation under such conditions are interpreted. Finally, the general relativistic effects are introduced to a line-element associated with a particle in relativistic motion and a time quantized line-element associated with gravity is obtained.

Implementation of a Quantized Line Element in Klein-Gordon and Dirac Fields

In this paper an ansatz that the anti-commutation rules hold only as integrated average over time intervals and not at every instant giving rise to a time-discrete form of Klein-Gordon equation is examined. This coarse-grained validation of the anti-commutation rules enables us to show that the relativistic energy-momentum relation holds only over discrete time intervals, fitting well with the time-energy uncertainty relation. When this time-discrete scheme is applied to four vector notations in relativity, the line-element can be quantized and thereby how the physical attributes associated with time, space and matter can be quantized is sketched. This potentially enables us to discuss the Zeno’s arrow paradox within the classical limit. As the solutions of the Dirac equation can be used to construct solutions to the Klein-Gordon equation, this temporal quantization rule is applied to the Dirac equation and the solutions associated with the Dirac equation under such conditions are interpreted. Finally, the general relativistic effects are introduced to a line-element associated with a particle in relativistic motion and a time quantized line-element associated with gravity is obtained.

Uncertainty relation in Schwarzschild spacetime

We explore the entropic uncertainty relation in the curved background outside a Schwarzschild black hole, and find that Hawking radiation introduces a nontrivial modification on the uncertainty bound for particular observer, therefore it could be witnessed by proper uncertainty game experimentally. We first investigate an uncertainty game between a free falling observer and his static partner holding a quantum memory initially entangled with the quantum system to be measured. Due to the information loss from Hawking decoherence, we find an inevitable increase of the uncertainty on the outcome of measurements in the view of static observer, which is dependent on the mass of the black hole, the distance of observer from event horizon, and the mode frequency of quantum memory. To illustrate the generality of this paradigm, we relate the entropic uncertainty bound with other uncertainty probe, e.g., time–energy uncertainty. In an alternative game between two static players, we show that quantum information of qubit can be transferred to quantum memory through a bath of fluctuating quantum fields outside the black hole. For a particular choice of initial state, we show that the Hawking decoherence cannot counteract entanglement generation after the dynamical evolution of system, which triggers an effectively reduced uncertainty bound that violates the intrinsic limit −log2⁡c. Numerically estimation for a proper choice of initial state shows that our result is comparable with possible real experiments. Finally, a discussion on the black hole firewall paradox in the context of entropic uncertainty relation is given.

Study of electron transport in polybenzenoid chains covalently attached to gold atoms through unsaturated methylene linkers

It is well recognized that chemical properties such as aromaticity influence strongly the transport of electrons within a molecule. Since these properties are calculated from equilibrium wave functions, methods relying on equilibrium electronic distributions to determine the electron transport, such as those stemmed from the energy–time uncertainty relation, may be suitable to connect chemical concepts and electron transport. Here, we explore the relation of molecular conductance with the electric response and aromatic stabilization of molecular junctions formed with chains of polybenzenoid units attached to gold atoms through unsaturated methylene carbons. We have found that voltage dependence of conductance stems from the amount of electrons promoted by the electric potential from occupied to virtual molecular orbitals. We also show that aromaticity assists the electron transport when it arises from resonant polarized structures. Otherwise, aromaticity decreases electron transport as reported in previous theoretical and experimental works.

Time–Energy Uncertainty and Electronic Correlation in H+–Graphite Collisions

The formation of negative ions in the scattering of protons by a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surface is theoretically and experimentally analyzed for a large scattering angle and compared with previous results obtained in the same system but for a forward scattering geometry. These experiments were motivated by the fact that the interaction of a hydrogen atom with a surface is the prototype system for studying the intra-atomic Coulomb repulsion in an s-like valence orbital localized in the atom. We tried to answer the open questions related to the electronic correlation effects and the influence of the detailed surface band structure by using appropriate theoretical models. The comparison with the experiment of theoretical results obtained by using different limit approximations of the electronic repulsion in the atomic state shows the expected validity ranges according to the ion velocity. However, the most remarkable conclusion obtained from this comparison is the nonvalidity of an adiabatic picture of the energy levels shifted by the interactions with the surface atoms, when the energy uncertainty introduced by the ion velocity becomes of the order of the electronic repulsion in the hydrogen ground state.

Diffraction in time of polymer particles

We study the quantum dynamics of a suddenly released beam of particles using a background independent (polymer) quantization scheme. We show that, in the first order of approximation, the low-energy polymer distribution converges to the standard quantum-mechanical result in a clear fashion, but also arises an additional small polymer correction term. We find that the high-energy polymer behavior becomes predominant at short distances and short times, as we should expect. Numerical results are also presented. We find that particles whose wave functions satisfy the polymer wave equation do not exhibit the diffraction in time phenomena. The implementation of a modified time-energy uncertainty relation in the polymer framework is briefly discussed.