arXiv subjects

Michael G. Jabbour

Publications and source records attributed to Michael G. Jabbour.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Majorization precursors to supermodularity and subadditivity on the majorization lattice

We establish two structural majorization relations, which we call precursors, underlying the properties of supermodularity and subadditivity on the lattice induced by majorization. These are precursors in that they immediately imply that all sums of concave functions, which we dub sum-concave functions, are supermodular and subadditive on the majorization lattice. Using these majorization relations, we then show the supermodularity and subadditivity (in the lattice-theoretic sense) of Tsallis entropies (for all $α$) and Rényi entropies (for all $α> 1$), also recovering these properties for the Shannon entropy in the process. We further strengthen these inequalities, showing that: (i) all these entropic functionals are strictly subadditive on the majorization lattice; (ii) Tsallis entropies (and therefore the Shannon entropy as well) are strictly supermodular on the majorization lattice.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2026

Boson-fermion complementarity in a linear interferometer: An identity relating the determinant and permanent of a matrix

Bosonic and fermionic statistics are well known to give rise to antinomic behaviors, most notably boson bunching vs fermion antibunching. Here, we establish a fundamental relation that combines bosonic and fermionic multiparticle interferences in an arbitrary linear interferometer. The bosonic and fermionic transition probabilities appear together in a single equation which constrains their values, hence expressing a boson-fermion complementarity that is independent of the details of the interferometer. For two particles in any interferometer, for example, it implies that the average between the bosonic and fermionic probabilities must coincide with the probability obeyed by classical particles. Crucially, this fundamental relation also provides a heretofore unknown mathematical identity connecting the squared moduli of the permanent and determinant of an arbitrary complex matrix, hence extending an identity by Muir dating from the nineteenth century.

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arXiv2026

Complementarity between bosonic and fermionic many-body interferences with partially distinguishable particles

It is well known that bosons and fermions exhibit opposite behaviors when experiencing interference, in the sense that bosons have a tendency to bunch whereas fermions have a tendency to antibunch. Recently, this complementarity was mathematically characterized in [arXiv:2312.17709] by means of an identity relating the transition probabilities of both types of particles in a linear interferometer. Here, we show that such a complementarity still holds even when particles become partially distinguishable, for example, when they have slightly different polarizations or time delays. Namely, we establish a relation that combines bosonic and fermionic multiparticle interferences in an arbitrary linear interferometer, in the presence of partial distinguishability. Incidentally, this also provides a new mathematical identity relating the permanent and determinant of tensors of order 3. Importantly, this complementarity has direct operational consequences in quantum metrology. Indeed, we show that the correlation matrices for bosonic and fermionic particle number distributions at the output of the interferometer obey a simple sum rule: their sum equals twice the correlation matrix for classical particles. This, in turn, constraints the achievable quantum Fisher information in phase-estimation protocols, highlighting a trade-off whereby greater indistinguishability enhances bosonic sensitivity whereas reduced indistinguishability can benefit fermionic schemes.

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arXiv2025

Continuity bounds for quantum entropies arising from a fundamental entropic inequality

We establish a tight upper bound for the difference in von Neumann entropies between two quantum states, $ρ_1$ and $ρ_2$. This bound is expressed in terms of the von Neumann entropies of the mutually orthogonal states derived from the Jordan-Hahn decomposition of the difference operator $(ρ_1 - ρ_2)$. This yields a novel entropic inequality that implies the well-known Audenaert-Fannes (AF) inequality. In fact, it also leads to a refinement of the AF inequality. We employ this inequality to obtain a uniform continuity bound for the quantum conditional entropy of two states whose marginals on the conditioning system coincide. We additionally use it to derive a continuity bound for the quantum relative entropy in both variables. Interestingly, the fundamental entropic inequality is also valid in infinite dimensions.

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arXiv2025

Complexity of Gaussian quantum optics with a limited number of non-linearities

It is well known in quantum optics that any process involving the preparation of a multimode gaussian state, followed by a gaussian operation and gaussian measurements, can be efficiently simulated by classical computers. Here, we provide evidence that computing transition amplitudes of Gaussian processes with a single-layer of non-linearities is hard for classical computers. To do so, we show how an efficient algorithm to solve this problem could be used to efficiently approximate outcome probabilities of a Gaussian boson sampling experiment. We also extend this complexity result to the problem of computing transition probabilities of Gaussian processes with two layers of non-linearities, by developing a Hadamard test for continuous-variable systems that may be of independent interest. Given recent experimental developments in the implementation of photon-photon interactions, our results may inspire new schemes showing quantum computational advantage or algorithmic applications of non-linear quantum optical systems realizable in the near-term.

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arXiv2025

Unification of observational entropy with maximum entropy principles

We introduce a definition of coarse-grained entropy that unifies measurement-based (observational entropy) and max-entropy-based (Jaynes) approaches to coarse-graining, by identifying physical constraints with information theoretic priors. The definition is shown to include as special cases most other entropies of interest in physics. We then consider second laws, showing that the definition admits new entropy increase theorems and connections to thermodynamics. We survey mathematical properties of the definition, and show it resolves some pathologies of the traditional observational entropy in infinite dimensions. Finally, we study the dynamics of this entropy in a quantum random matrix model and a classical hard sphere gas. Together the results suggest that this generalized observational entropy can form the basis of a highly general approach to statistical mechanics.

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arXiv2025

Two-particle quantum interference in a nonlinear optical medium: a witness of timelike indistinguishability

The Hong-Ou-Mandel effect is a paradigmatic quantum phenomenon demonstrating the interference of two indistinguishable photons that are linearly coupled at a 50:50 beam splitter. Here, we transpose such a two-particle quantum interference effect to the nonlinear regime, when two single photons are impinging on a parametric down-conversion crystal. Formally, this transposition amounts to exchanging space and time variables, giving rise to an unknown form of timelike quantum interference. The two-photon component of the output state is a superposition of the incident photons being either transmitted or reborn, that is, replaced by indistinguishable substitutes due to their interaction with the nonlinear crystal. We experimentally demonstrate the suppression of the probability of detecting precisely one photon pair when the amplification gain is tuned to 2, which arises from the destructive interference between the transmitted and reborn photon pairs. This heretofore unobserved quantum manifestation of indistinguishability in time pushes nonlinear quantum interference towards a new regime with multiple photons. Hence, composing this effect with larger linear optical circuits should provide a tool to generate multimode quantum non-Gaussian states, which are essential resources for photonic quantum computers.

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arXiv2025

Tightening continuity bounds for entropies and bounds on quantum capacities

Uniform continuity bounds on entropies are generally expressed in terms of a single distance measure between a pair of probability distributions or quantum states, typically, the total variation distance or trace distance. However, if an additional distance measure between the probability distributions or states is known, then the continuity bounds can be significantly strengthened. Here, we prove a tight uniform continuity bound for the Shannon entropy in terms of both the local- and total variation distances, sharpening an inequality proven in [I. Sason, IEEE Trans. Inf. Th., 59, 7118 (2013)]. We also obtain a uniform continuity bound for the von Neumann entropy in terms of both the operator norm- and trace distances. The bound is tight when the quotient of the trace distance by the operator norm distance is an integer. We then apply our results to compute upper bounds on the quantum- and private classical capacities of channels. We begin by refining the concept of approximate degradable channels, namely, $\varepsilon$-degradable channels, which are, by definition, $\varepsilon$-close in diamond norm to their complementary channel when composed with a degrading channel. To this end, we introduce the notion of $(\varepsilon,ν)$-degradable channels; these are $\varepsilon$-degradable channels that are, in addition, $ν$-close in completely bounded spectral norm to their complementary channel, when composed with the same degrading channel. This allows us to derive improved upper bounds to the quantum- and private classical capacities of such channels. Moreover, these bounds can be further improved by considering certain unstabilized versions of the above norms. We show that upper bounds on the latter can be efficiently expressed as semidefinite programs. We illustrate our results by obtaining a new upper bound on the quantum capacity of the qubit depolarizing channel.

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arXiv2024

From Classical to Quantum: Uniform Continuity Bounds on Entropies in Infinite Dimensions

We prove a variety of new and refined uniform continuity bounds for entropies of both classical random variables on an infinite state space and of quantum states of infinite-dimensional systems. We obtain the first tight continuity estimate on the Shannon entropy of random variables with a countably infinite alphabet. The proof relies on a new mean-constrained Fano-type inequality and the notion of maximal coupling of random variables. We then employ this classical result to derive the first tight energy-constrained continuity bound for the von Neumann entropy of states of infinite-dimensional quantum systems, when the Hamiltonian is the number operator, which is arguably the most relevant Hamiltonian in the study of infinite-dimensional quantum systems in the context of quantum information theory. The above scheme works only for Shannon- and von Neumann entropies. Hence, to deal with more general entropies, e.g. $α$-Rényi and $α$-Tsallis entropies, with $α\in (0,1)$, for which continuity bounds are known only for finite-dimensional systems, we develop a novel approximation scheme which relies on recent results on operator Hölder continuous functions and the equivalence of all Schatten norms in special spectral subspaces of the Hamiltonian. This approach is, as we show, motivated by continuity bounds for $α$-Rényi and $α$-Tsallis entropies of random variables that follow from the Hölder continuity of the entropy functionals. Bounds for $α>1$ are provided, too. Finally, we settle an open problem on related approximation questions posed in the recent works by Shirokov on the so-called Finite-dimensional Approximation (FA) property.

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arXiv2024

Constructing local models for general measurements on bosonic Gaussian states

We derive a simple sufficient criterion for the locality of correlations obtained from given measurements on a Gaussian quantum state. The criterion is based on the construction of a local-hidden-variable model which works by passing part of the inherent Gaussian noise of the state onto the measurements. We illustrate our result in the setting of displaced photodetection on a two-mode squeezed state. Here, our criterion exhibits the existence of a local-hidden-variable model for a range of parameters where the state is still entangled.

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arXiv2024

A central limit theorem for partially distinguishable bosons

The quantum central limit theorem derived by Cushen and Hudson provides the foundations for understanding how subsystems of large bosonic systems evolving unitarily do reach equilibrium. It finds important applications in the context of quantum interferometry, for example, with photons. A practical feature of current photonic experiments, however, is that photons carry their own internal degrees of freedom pertaining to, e.g., the polarization or spatiotemporal mode they occupy, which makes them partially distinguishable. The ensuing deviation from ideal indistinguishability is well known to have observable consequences, for example in relation with boson bunching, but an understanding of its role in bosonic equilibration phenomena is still missing. Here, we generalize the Cushen-Hudson quantum central limit theorem to encompass scenarios with partial distinguishability, implying an asymptotic convergence of the subsystem's reduced state towards a multimode Gaussian state defined over the internal degrees of freedom. While these asymptotic internal states may not be directly accessible, we show that particle number distributions carry important signatures of distinguishability, which may be used to diagnose experimental imperfections in large boson sampling experiments.

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arXiv2023

Impossibility of bosonic autonomous entanglement engines in the weak-coupling limit

Entanglement is a fundamental feature of quantum physics and a key resource for quantum communication, computing and sensing. Entangled states are fragile and maintaining coherence is a central challenge in quantum information processing. Nevertheless, entanglement can be generated and stabilised through dissipative processes. In fact, entanglement has been shown to exist in the steady state of certain interacting quantum systems subject solely to incoherent coupling to thermal baths. This has been demonstrated in a range of bi- and multipartite settings using systems of finite dimension. Here we focus on the steady state of infinite-dimensional bosonic systems. Specifically, we consider any set of bosonic modes undergoing excitation-number-preserving interactions of arbitrary strength and divided between an arbitrary number of parties that each couple weakly to thermal baths at different temperatures. We show that a unique steady state is always separable.

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arXiv2023

Continuous majorization in quantum phase space

We explore the role of majorization theory in quantum phase space. To this purpose, we restrict ourselves to quantum states with positive Wigner functions and show that the continuous version of majorization theory provides an elegant and very natural approach to exploring the information-theoretic properties of Wigner functions in phase space. After identifying all Gaussian pure states as equivalent in the precise sense of continuous majorization, which can be understood in light of Hudson's theorem, we conjecture a fundamental majorization relation: any positive Wigner function is majorized by the Wigner function of a Gaussian pure state (especially, the bosonic vacuum state or ground state of the harmonic oscillator). As a consequence, any Schur-concave function of the Wigner function is lower bounded by the value it takes for the vacuum state. This implies in turn that the Wigner entropy is lower bounded by its value for the vacuum state, while the converse is notably not true. Our main result is then to prove this fundamental majorization relation for a relevant subset of Wigner-positive quantum states which are mixtures of the three lowest eigenstates of the harmonic oscillator. Beyond that, the conjecture is also supported by numerical evidence. We conclude by discussing some implications of this conjecture in the context of entropic uncertainty relations in phase space.

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arXiv2023

Majorization ladder in bosonic Gaussian channels

We show the existence of a majorization ladder in bosonic Gaussian channels, that is, we prove that the channel output resulting from the $n\text{th}$ energy eigenstate (Fock state) majorizes the channel output resulting from the $(n\!+\!1)\text{th}$ energy eigenstate (Fock state). This reflects a remarkable link between the energy at the input of the channel and a disorder relation at its output as captured by majorization theory. This result was previously known in the special cases of a pure-loss channel and quantum-limited amplifier, and we achieve here its nontrivial generalization to any single-mode phase-covariant (or -contravariant) bosonic Gaussian channel. The key to our proof is the explicit construction of a column-stochastic matrix that relates the outputs of the channel for any two subsequent Fock states at its input. This is made possible by exploiting a recently found recurrence relation on multiphoton transition probabilities for Gaussian unitaries [M. G. Jabbour and N. J. Cerf, Phys. Rev. Research 3, 043065 (2021)]. Possible generalizations and implications of these results are then discussed.

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arXiv2022

A tight uniform continuity bound for the Arimoto-Rényi conditional entropy and its extension to classical-quantum states

We prove a tight uniform continuity bound for Arimoto's version of the conditional $α$-Rényi entropy, for the range $α\in [0, 1)$. This definition of the conditional Rényi entropy is the most natural one among the multiple forms which exist in the literature, since it satisfies two desirable properties of a conditional entropy, namely, the fact that conditioning reduces entropy, and that the associated reduction in uncertainty cannot exceed the information gained by conditioning. Furthermore, it has found interesting applications in various information theoretic tasks such as guessing with side information and sequential decoding. This conditional entropy reduces to the conditional Shannon entropy in the limit $α\to 1$, and this in turn allows us to recover the recently obtained tight uniform continuity bound for the latter from our result. Finally, we apply our result to obtain a tight uniform continuity bound for the conditional $α$-Rényi entropy of a classical-quantum state, for $α$ in the same range as above. This again yields the corresponding known bound for the conditional entropy of the state in the limit $α\to 1$.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2021

Multiparticle quantum interference in Bogoliubov bosonic transformations

We explore the multiparticle transition probabilities in Gaussian unitaries effected by a two-mode Bogoliubov bosonic transformation on the mode annihilation and creation operators. We show that the transition probabilities can be characterized by remarkably simple, yet unsuspected recurrence equations involving a linear combination of probabilities. The recurrence exhibits an interferometric suppression term - a negative probability - which generalizes the seminal Hong-Ou-Mandel effect to more than two indistinguishable photons impinging on a beam splitter of rational transmittance. Unexpectedly, interferences thus originate in this description from the cancellation of probabilities instead of amplitudes. Our framework, which builds on the generating function of the non-Gaussian matrix elements of Gaussian unitaries in Fock basis, is illustrated here for the most common passive and active linear coupling between two optical modes driven by a beam splitter or a parametric amplifier. Hence, it also allows us to predict unsuspected multiphoton interference effects in an optical amplifier of rational gain. In particular, we confirm the newly found two-photon interferometric suppression effect in an amplifier of gain 2 originating from timelike indistinguishability (arXiv:2012.15165 [quant-ph]). Overall, going beyond standard two-mode optical components, we expect our method will prove valuable for describing general quantum circuits involving Bogoliubov bosonic transformations.

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arXiv2020

Two-boson quantum interference in time

The celebrated Hong-Ou-Mandel effect is the paradigm of two-particle quantum interference. It has its roots in the symmetry of identical quantum particles, as dictated by the Pauli principle. Two identical bosons impinging on a beam splitter (of transmittance 1/2) cannot be detected in coincidence at both output ports, as confirmed in numerous experiments with light or even matter. Here, we establish that partial time reversal transforms the beamsplitter linear coupling into amplification. We infer from this duality the existence of an unsuspected two-boson interferometric effect in a quantum amplifier (of gain 2) and identify the underlying mechanism as timelike indistinguishability. This fundamental mechanism is generic to any bosonic Bogoliubov transformation, so we anticipate wide implications in quantum physics.

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arXiv2019

Quantum thermodynamics in a multipartite setting: A resource theory of local Gaussian work extraction for multimode bosonic systems

Quantum thermodynamics can be cast as a resource theory by considering free access to a heat bath, thereby viewing the Gibbs state at a fixed temperature as a free state and hence any other state as a resource. Here, we consider a multipartite scenario where several parties attempt at extracting work locally, each having access to a local heat bath (possibly with a different temperature), assisted with an energy-preserving global unitary. As a specific model, we analyze a collection of harmonic oscillators or a multimode bosonic system. Focusing on the Gaussian paradigm, we construct a reasonable resource theory of local activity for a multimode bosonic system, where we identify as free any state that is obtained from a product of thermal states (possibly at different temperatures) acted upon by any linear-optics (passive Gaussian) transformation. The associated free operations are then all linear-optics transformations supplemented with tensoring and partial tracing. We show that the local Gaussian extractable work (if each party applies a Gaussian unitary, assisted with linear optics) is zero if and only if the covariance matrix of the system is that of a free state. Further, we develop a resource theory of local Gaussian extractable work, defined as the difference between the trace and symplectic trace of the covariance matrix of the system. We prove that it is a resource monotone that cannot increase under free operations. We also provide examples illustrating the distillation of local activity and local Gaussian extractable work.

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