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Quantum optics

Coherence from spontaneity

Nature Physics volume 7, pages 375–376 (2011)Cite this article

The observation of quantum phenomena usually requires utmost control and isolation of a quantum system from its noisy environment. A study now shows how even a spontaneously emitted photon may force an atom into a coherent quantum state.

The physics of single particles is often used for demonstrating intriguing quantum phenomena, and it also becomes relevant in modern quantum-information experiments. Jiří Tomkovič and his co-workers, writing in Nature Physics1, now report on a new twist on this theme and show how the spontaneous emission of a single photon in front of a mirror may take a single atom into a superposition of two centre-of-mass states.

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Figure 1: Simplified representation of how even the spontaneous emission of a single photon may induce atomic coherence in the presence of a nearby mirror.

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  1. Markus Arndt is at the University of Vienna, VCQ, Faculty of Physics, Boltzmanngasse 5, A-1090 Vienna, Austria,

    Markus Arndt

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  1. Markus Arndt
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Correspondence to Markus Arndt.

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Arndt, M. Coherence from spontaneity. Nature Phys 7, 375–376 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys1987

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