arXiv · 1905.01147
Topological transition in measurement-induced geometric phases
Abstract
The state of a quantum system, adiabatically driven in a cycle, may acquire a measurable phase depending only on the closed trajectory in parameter space. Such geometric phases are ubiquitous, and also underline the physics of robust topological phenomena such as the quantum Hall effect. Equivalently, a geometric phase may be induced through a cyclic sequence of quantum measurements. We show that the application of a sequence of weak measurements renders the closed trajectories, hence the geometric phase, stochastic. We study the concomitant probability distribution and show that, when varying the measurement strength, the mapping between the measurement sequence and the geometric phase undergoes a topological transition. Our finding may impact measurement-induced control and manipulation of quantum states---a promising approach to quantum information processing. It also has repercussions on understanding the foundations of quantum measurement.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Valentin Gebhart, Kyrylo Snizhko, Thomas Wellens, Andreas Buchleitner, Alessandro Romito, Yuval Gefen. 2019-05-03. Topological transition in measurement-induced geometric phases. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1911620117
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.