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Marcelo O. Terra Cunha

Publications and source records attributed to Marcelo O. Terra Cunha.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Entanglement quantifiers and phase transitions

By the topological argument that the identity matrix is surrounded by a set of separable states follows the result that if a system is entangled at thermal equilibrium for some temperature, then it presents a phase transition (PT) where entanglement can be viewed as the order parameter. However, analyzing different entanglement measures in the 2-qubit context, we see that different entanglement quantifiers can indicate different orders for the same PT. Examples are given for different Hamiltonians. Moving to the multipartite context we show necessary and sufficient conditions for a family of entanglement monotones to attest quantum phase transitions.

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Are all maximally entangled states pure?

We study if all maximally entangled states are pure through several entanglement monotones. In the bipartite case, we find that the same conditions which lead to the uniqueness of the entropy of entanglement as a measure of entanglement, exclude the existence of maximally mixed entangled states. In the multipartite scenario, our conclusions allow us to generalize the idea of monogamy of entanglement: we establish the \textit{polygamy of entanglement}, expressing that if a general state is maximally entangled with respect to some kind of multipartite entanglement, then it is necessarily factorized of any other system.

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Geometry of Entanglement Sudden Death: Explicit Examples

In open quantum systems, entanglement can vanish faster than coherence. This phenomenon is usually called sudden death of entanglement. In [M. O. Terra Cunha, New J. Phys. 9, 237 (2007)] a geometrical explanation was offered and a classification of all possible scenarios was given. Some classes were exemplified, but it was still an open question whether there were examples for the other ones. This was solved in [R.C. Drumond and M.O. Terra Cunha, arXiv:0809.4445v1]. Here we briefly review the problem, state our results in a precise way, discuss the generality of the approach, and add some speculative desirable generalizations.

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Useful entanglement from the Pauli principle

We address the question whether identical-particle entanglement is a useful resource for quantum information processing. We answer this question positively by reporting a scheme to create entanglement using semiconductor quantum wells. The Pauli exclusion principle forces quantum correlations between the spins of two independent fermions in the conduction band. Selective electron-hole recombination then transfers this entanglement to the polarization of emitted photons, which can subsequently be used for quantum information tasks.

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The Geometry of Entanglement Sudden Death

In open quantum systems, entanglement can vanish faster than coherence. This phenomenon is usually called sudden death of entanglement. In this paper sudden death of entanglement is discussed from a geometrical point of view, in the context of two qubits. A classification of possible scenarios is presented, with important known examples classified. Theoretical and experimental construction of other examples is suggested as well as large dimensional and multipartite versions of the effect.

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Entanglement versus energy in the entanglement transfer problem

We study the relation between energy and entanglement in an entanglement transfer problem. We first analyze the general setup of two entangled qubits (a and b) exchanging this entanglement with two other independent qubits (A and B). Qubit a (b) interacts with qubit A (B) via a spin exchange-like unitary evolution. A physical realization of this scenario could be the problem of two-level atoms transferring entanglement to resonant cavities via independent Jaynes-Cummings interactions. We study the dynamics of entanglement and energy for the second pair of qubits (tracing out the originally entangled ones) and show that these quantities are closely related. For example, the allowed quantum states occupy a restricted area in a phase diagram entanglement vs. energy. Moreover the curve which bounds this area is exactly the one followed if both interactions are equal and the entire four qubit system is isolated. We also consider the case when the target pair of qubits is subjected to losses and can spontaneously decay.

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Estimating entanglement of unknown states

The experimental determination of entanglement is a major goal in the quantum information field. In general the knowledge of the state is required in order to quantify its entanglement. Here we express a lower bound to the robustness of entanglement of a state based only on the measurement of the energy observable and on the calculation of a separability energy. This allows the estimation of entanglement dismissing the knowledge of the state in question.

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Geometric Phase Transition: direct measurement of a mathematical abstraction

By viewing entanglement as a state function, a new kind of phase transition takes place: the geometric phase transition. This phenomenon occurs due to singularities in the shape of the entangled states set. It is shown how this result can be carried to provide a better understanding of the geometry of entanglement. Surprisingly, this study can be done experimentally, what allows to determine the shape of different entangled states sets, a purely mathematical definition, in real experiments.

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Quantum Erasure: Quantum Interference Revisited

Recent experiments in quantum optics have shed light on the foundations of quantum physics. Quantum erasers - modified quantum interference experiments - show that quantum entanglement is responsible for the complementarity principle.

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