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arXiv · 2103.15892

General Relativistic Decoherence with Applications to Dark Matter Detection

Itamar J. Allali·Mark P. Hertzberg
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Abstract

Quantum mechanics allows for states in macroscopic superpositions, but they ordinarily undergo rapid decoherence due to interactions with their environment. A system that only interacts gravitationally, such as an arrangement of dark matter (DM), may exhibit slow decoherence. In this Letter, we compute the decoherence rate of a quantum object within general relativity, focusing on superposed metric oscillations; a rare quantum general relativistic result. For axion DM in a superposition of the field's phase, we find that DM in the Milky Way is robust against decoherence, while a spatial superposition is not. This novel phase behavior may impact direct detection experiments.

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Itamar J. Allali, Mark P. Hertzberg. 2021-03-29. General Relativistic Decoherence with Applications to Dark Matter Detection. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.127.031301

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