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Ivan Agullo

Publications and source records attributed to Ivan Agullo.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Loop quantum cosmology: relation between theory and observations

This chapter provides a review of the frameworks developed for cosmological perturbation theory in loop quantum cosmology, and applications to various models of the early universe including inflation, ekpyrosis and the matter bounce, with an emphasis on potential observational consequences. It also includes a discussion on extensions to include non-Gaussianities and background anisotropies, as well as on its limitations concerning trans-Planckian perturbations and quantization ambiguities. It concludes with a summary of recent work studying the relation between loop quantum cosmology and full loop quantum gravity.

gr-qc↗

Robustness of entanglement in Hawking radiation for optical systems immersed in thermal baths

Entanglement is the quantum signature of Hawking's particle pair-creation from causal horizons, for gravitational and analog systems alike. Ambient thermal fluctuations, ubiquitous in realistic situations, strongly affects the entanglement generated in the Hawking process, completely extinguishing it when the ambient temperature is comparable to the Hawking temperature. In this work, we show that optical analog systems have a built-in robustness to thermal fluctuations which are at rest in the laboratory. In such systems, horizons move relative to the laboratory frame at velocities close to the speed of light. We find that a subtle interplay between this relative velocity and dispersion protects the Hawking-generated entanglement -- allowing ambient temperatures several orders of magnitude larger than the Hawking temperature without significantly affecting entanglement.

gr-qc↗

Quantum Clock Synchronization for Future NASA Deep Space Quantum Links and Fundamental Science

The ability to measure, hold and distribute time with high precision and accuracy is a foundational capability for scientific exploration. Beyond fundamental science, time synchronization is an indispensable feature of public and private communication, navigation and ranging, and distributed sensing, amongst others technological applications. We propose the implementation of a quantum network of satellite- and ground-based clocks with the ability to implement Quantum Clock Synchronization to picosecond accuracy. Implementation of the proposed QCS network offers a double advantage: (1) a more accurate, robust, and secure time synchronization network for classical applications than currently possible, and (2) a resource to fulfill the much more stringent synchronization requirements of future quantum communication networks.

quant-ph↗

Global Time Distribution via Satellite-Based Sources of Entangled Photons

We propose a satellite-based scheme to perform clock synchronization between ground stations spread across the globe using quantum resources. We refer to this as a quantum clock synchronization (QCS) network. Through detailed numerical simulations, we assess the feasibility and capabilities of a near-term implementation of this scheme. We consider a small constellation of nanosatellites equipped only with modest resources. These include quantum devices such as spontaneous parametric down conversion (SPDC) sources, avalanche photo-detectors (APDs), and moderately stable on-board clocks such as chip scale atomic clocks (CSACs). In our simulations, the various performance parameters describing the hardware have been chosen such that they are either already commercially available, or require only moderate advances. We conclude that with such a scheme establishing a global network of ground based clocks synchronized to sub-nanosecond level (up to a few picoseconds) of precision, would be feasible. Such QCS satellite constellations would form the infrastructure for a future quantum network, able to serve as a globally accessible entanglement resource. At the same time, our clock synchronization protocol, provides the sub-nanosecond level synchronization required for many quantum networking protocols, and thus, can be seen as adding an extra layer of utility to quantum technologies in the space domain designed for other purposes.

quant-ph↗

Symplectic circuits, entanglement, and stimulated Hawking radiation in analog gravity

We introduce a convenient set of analytical tools (the Gaussian formalism) and diagrams (symplectic circuits) to analyze multi-mode scattering events in analog gravity, such as pair-creation a lá Hawking by black hole and white hole analog event horizons. The diagrams prove to be valuable ansatzes for the scattering dynamics, especially in settings where direct analytic results are not straightforward and one must instead rely on numerical simulations. We use these tools to investigate entanglement generation in single- and multi-horizon scenarios, in particular when the Hawking process is stimulated with classical (e.g., thermal noise) and non-classical (e.g., single-mode squeezed vacuum) input states -- demonstrating, for instance, that initial squeezing can enhance the production of entanglement and overcome the deleterious effects that initial thermal fluctuations have on the output entanglement. To make further contact with practical matters, we examine how attenuation degrades quantum correlations between Hawking pairs. The techniques that we employ are generally applicable to analog gravity setups of (Gaussian) bosonic quantum systems, such as analog horizons produced in optical analogs and in Bose-Einstein condensates, and should be of great utility in these domains. We show the applicability of these techniques by putting them in action for an optical system containing a pair white-black hole analog, extending our previous analysis of [Phys. Rev. Lett. 128, 091301 (2022)].

gr-qc↗

Event horizons are tunable factories of quantum entanglement

That event horizons generate quantum correlations via the Hawking effect is well known. We argue, however, that the creation of entanglement can be modulated as desired, by appropriately illuminating the horizon. We adapt techniques from quantum information theory to quantify the entanglement produced during the Hawking process and show that, while ambient thermal noise (e.g., CMB radiation) degrades it, the use of squeezed inputs can boost the non-separability between the interior and exterior regions in a controlled manner. We further apply our ideas to analog event horizons concocted in the laboratory and insist that the ability to tune the generation of entanglement offers a promising route towards detecting quantum signatures of the elusive Hawking effect.

gr-qc↗

Observational constraints on anisotropies for bouncing alternatives to inflation

We calculate how primordial anisotropies in the background space-time affect the evolution of cosmological perturbations for bouncing alternatives to inflation, like ekpyrosis and the matter bounce scenario. We find that the leading order effect of anisotropies in the contracting phase of the universe is to induce anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background with a very concrete form: a scale-invariant quadrupolar angular distribution. Sub-leading effects are the generation of higher-order moments in the angular distribution, as well as cross-correlations between scalar and tensor modes. We also find that observational constraints from the cosmic microwave background on the quadrupole moment provide strong bounds on allowed anisotropies for bouncing alternatives to inflation that are significantly more constraining than the bounds previously obtained using scaling arguments based on the conjectured Belinski-Khalatnikov-Lifshitz instability.

astro-ph.CO↗

xAct Implementation of the Theory of Cosmological Perturbation in Bianchi I Spacetimes

This paper presents a computational algorithm to derive the theory of linear gauge invariant perturbations on anisotropic cosmological spacetimes of the Bianchi I type. Our code is based on the tensor algebra packages xTensor and xPert, within the computational infrastructure of xAct written in Mathematica. The algorithm is based on a Hamiltonian, or phase space formulation, and it provides an efficient and transparent way of isolating the gauge invariant degrees of freedom in the perturbation fields and to obtain the Hamiltonian generating their dynamics. The restriction to Friedmann--Lemaître--Robertson--Walker spacetimes is straightforward.

gr-qc↗

Does inflation squeeze cosmological perturbations?

There seems to exist agreement about the fact that inflation squeezes the quantum state of cosmological perturbations and entangles modes with wavenumbers $\vec k$ and $-\vec k$. Paradoxically, this result has been used to justify both the classicality as well as the quantumness of the primordial perturbations at the end of inflation. We reexamine this question and point out that the definition of two-mode squeezing of the modes $\vec k$ and $-\vec k$ used in previous work rests on choices that are only justified for systems with time-independent Hamiltonians and finitely many degrees of freedom. We argue that for quantum fields propagating on generic time-dependent Friedmann-Lemaître-Robertson-Walker backgrounds, the notion of squeezed states is subject to ambiguities, which go hand in hand with the ambiguity in the definition of particles. In other words, we argue that the question "does the cosmic expansion squeeze and entangle modes with wavenumbers $\vec k$ and $-\vec k$?" contains the same ambiguity as the question "does the cosmic expansion create particles?". When additional symmetries are present, like in the (quasi) de Sitter-like spacetimes used in inflationary models, one can resolve the ambiguities, and we find that the answer to the question in the title turns out to be in the negative. We further argue that this fact does not make the state of cosmological perturbations any less quantum, at least when deviations from Gaussianity can be neglected.

gr-qc↗

Stimulating the Quantum Aspects of an Optical Analog White-Black Hole

This work introduces a synergistic combination of analytical methods and numerical simulations to study the propagation of weak wave-packet modes in an optical medium containing the analog of a pair white-black hole. We apply our tools to analyze several aspects of the evolution, such as (i) the region of the parameter space where the analogy with the Hawking effect is on firm ground and (ii) the influence that ambient thermal noise and detector inefficiencies have on the observability of the Hawking effect. We find that aspects of the Hawking effect that are of quantum origin, such as quantum entanglement, are extremely fragile to the influence of inefficiencies and noise. We propose a protocol to amplify and observe these quantum aspects, based on seeding the process with a single-mode squeezed input.

gr-qc↗

Anomalies in the Cosmic Microwave Background and their Non-Gaussian Origin in Loop Quantum Cosmology

Anomalies in the cosmic microwave background (CMB) refer to features that have been observed, mostly at large angular scales, and which show some tension with the statistical predictions of the standard $Λ$CDM model. In this work, we focus our attention on power suppression, dipolar modulation, a preference for odd parity, and the tension in the lensing parameter $A_L$. Though the statistical significance of each individual anomaly is inconclusive, collectively they are significant, and could indicate new physics beyond the $Λ$CDM model. In this article, we present a brief, but pedagogical introduction to CMB anomalies and propose a common origin in the context of loop quantum cosmology.

gr-qc↗

Absorption spectroscopy of quantum black holes with gravitational waves

The observation of electromagnetic radiation emitted or absorbed by matter was instrumental in revealing the quantum properties of atoms and molecules in the early XX century, and constituted a turning-point in the development of the quantum theory. Quantum mechanics changes dramatically the way radiation and matter interact, making the probability of emission and absorption of light strongly frequency dependent, as clearly manifested in atomic spectra. In this essay, we advocate that gravitational radiation can play, for the quantum aspects of black holes, a similar role as electromagnetic radiation did for atoms, and that the advent of gravitational-wave astronomy can bring this fascinating possibility to the realm of observations.

gr-qc↗

Potential gravitational-wave signatures of quantum gravity

We show that gravitational-wave astronomy has the potential to inform us on quantum aspects of black holes. Based on Bekenstein's quantization, we find that black hole area discretization could impart observable imprints to the gravitational-wave signal from a pair of merging black holes, affecting their absorption properties during inspiral and their late-time relaxation after merger. In contrast with previous results, we find that black hole rotation, ubiquitous in astrophysics, improves our ability to probe quantum effects. Our analysis shows that gravitational-wave echoes and suppressed tidal heating are signs of new physics from which the fundamental quantum of black hole area can be measured, and which are within reach of future detectors. Our results also highlight the need to derive predictions from specific quantum gravity proposals.

gr-qc↗

Observational consequences of Bianchi I spacetimes in loop quantum cosmology

Anisotropies generically dominate the earliest stages of expansion of a homogeneous universe. They are particularly relevant in bouncing models, since shears grow in the contracting phase of the cosmos, making the isotropic situation unstable. This paper extends the study of cosmological perturbations in loop quantum cosmology (LQC) to anisotropic Bianchi I models that contain a bounce followed by a phase of slow-roll inflation. We show that, although the shear tensor dilutes and the universe isotropizes soon after the bounce, cosmic perturbations retain memory of this short anisotropic phase. We develop the formalism needed to describe perturbations in anisotropic, effective LQC, and apply it to make predictions for the cosmic microwave background (CMB), while respecting current observational constraints. We show that the anisotropic bounce induces: (i) anisotropic features in all angular correlation functions in the CMB, and in particular a quadrupolar modulation that can account for a similar feature observed in the temperature map by the Planck satellite, and (ii) quantum entanglement between scalar and tensor modes, that manifests itself in temperature-polarization (T-B and E-B) correlations in the CMB.

gr-qc↗

Predictions for the CMB from an anisotropic quantum bounce

We introduce an extension of the standard inflationary paradigm on which the big bang singularity is replaced by an anisotropic bounce. Unlike in the big bang model, cosmological perturbations find an adiabatic regime in the past. We show that this scenario accounts for the observed quadrupolar modulation in the temperature anisotropies of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), and we make predictions for the remaining angular correlation functions E-E, B-B and T-E, together with non-zero temperature-polarization correlations T-B and E-B, that can be used to test our ideas. We base our calculations on the bounce predicted by loop quantum cosmology, but our techniques and conclusions apply to other bouncing models as well.

gr-qc↗

Hamiltonian theory of classical and quantum gauge invariant perturbations in Bianchi I spacetimes

We derive a Hamiltonian formulation of the theory of gauge invariant, linear perturbations in anisotropic Bianchi I spacetimes, and describe how to quantize this system. The matter content is assumed to be a minimally coupled scalar field with potential $V(ϕ)$. We show that a Bianchi I spacetime generically induces both anisotropies and quantum entanglement on cosmological perturbations, and provide the tools to compute the details of these features. We then apply this formalism to a scenario in which the inflationary era is preceded by an anisotropic Bianchi I phase, and discuss the potential imprints in observable quantities. The formalism developed here paves the road to a simultaneous canonical quantization of both the homogeneous degrees of freedom and the perturbations, a task that we develop in a companion paper.

gr-qc↗

Large scale anomalies in the CMB and non-Gaussianity in bouncing cosmologies

We propose that several of the anomalies that have been observed at large angular scales in the CMB have a common origin in a cosmic bounce that took place before the inflationary era. The bounce introduces a new physical scale in the problem, which breaks the almost scale invariance of inflation. As a result, the state of scalar perturbations at the onset of inflation is no longer the Bunch-Davies vacuum, but it rather contains excitations and non-Gaussianity, which are larger for infrared modes. We argue that the combined effect of these excitations and the correlations between CMB modes and longer wavelength perturbations, can account for the observed power suppression, for the dipolar asymmetry, and it can also produce a preference for odd-parity correlations. The model can also alleviate the tension in the lensing amplitude $A_L$. We adopt a phenomenological viewpoint by characterizing the model with a few free parameters, rather than restricting to specific bouncing theories. We identify the minimum set of ingredients needed for our ideas to hold, and point out examples of theories in the literature where these conditions are met.

astro-ph.CO↗

Anomalies in the CMB from a cosmic bounce

We explore a model of the early universe in which the inflationary epoch is preceded by a cosmic bounce, and argue that this scenario provides a common origin to several of the anomalous features that have been observed at large angular scales in the cosmic microwave background (CMB). More concretely, we show that a power suppression, a dipolar asymmetry, and a preference for odd-parity correlations, with amplitude and scale dependence in consonance with observations, are expected from this scenario. The model also alleviates the tension in the lensing amplitude. These signals originate from the indirect effect that non-Gaussian correlations between CMB modes and super-horizon wavelengths induce in the power spectrum. We do not restrict to any specific theory, but rather derive features common to a family bouncing models.

astro-ph.CO↗