ETH Polymer Physics seminar


2010-12-15
10:15 at HCI J 574

Sudden transition between classical and quantum decoherence

Sabrina Maniscalco

Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Turku, Finland

The interaction between a quantum system and its environment causes the rapid destruction of all quantum properties, such as the existence of quantum superpositions and of quantum correlations in composite systems. Decoherence and dissipation caused by the environment are responsible for the extreme fragility of quantum states and explain why quantum phenomena appear so weird to our eyes and our mind, used to deal with everyday classical objects. Moreover, decoherence is the major enemy of quantum technologies such as quantum computers and quantum communication devices. Is there any environment-resistant quantum property? Is there any physical system in which quantum correlations can survive, completely unaffected by the environment? After reviewing the main results on the quantum to classical transition, I will present the first evidence of the existence of a positive answer to these questions. The discovery of environment-resistant quantum correlations unveils a new feature of one of the most fundamental and fascinating aspects of quantum theory and may be a key breakthrough on quantum technologies.


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