Fundamental quantum optics experiments conceivable with satellites—reaching relativistic distances and velocities

By D. Rideout, T. Jennewein, Giovanni Amelino-Camelia, T. Demarie, B. Higgins, Achim Kempf, Adrian Kent, R. Laflamme, Xian Ma, Robert B. Mann and 7 more. 2012

190 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Physical theories are developed to describe phenomena in particular regimes, and generally are valid only within a limited range of scales. For example, general relativity provides an effective description of the Universe at large length scales, and has been tested from the cosmic scale down to distances as small as 10 m (Dimopoulos 2007 Phys. Rev. Lett. 98 111102; 2008 Phys. Rev. D 78 042003). In contrast, quantum theory provides an effective description of physics at small length scales. Direct tests of quantum theory have been performed at the smallest probeable scales at the Large Hadron Collider, ∼10−20 m, up to that of hundreds of kilometres (Ursin et al 2007 Nature Phys. 3 481–6). Yet, such tests fall short of the scales required to investigate potentially significant physics that arises at the intersection of quantum and relativistic regimes. We propose to push direct tests of quantum theory to larger and larger length scales, approaching that of the radius of curvature of spacetime, where we begin to probe the interaction between gravity and quantum phenomena. In particular, we review a wide variety of potential tests of fundamental physics that are conceivable with artificial satellites in Earth orbit and elsewhere in the solar system, and attempt to sketch the magnitudes of potentially observable effects. The tests have the potential to determine the applicability of quantum theory at larger length scales, eliminate various alternative physical theories, and place bounds on phenomenological models motivated by ideas about spacetime microstructure from quantum gravity. From a more pragmatic perspective, as quantum communication technologies such as quantum key distribution advance into space towards large distances, some of the fundamental physical effects discussed here may need to be taken into account to make such schemes viable.

Subfields: Astronomy and Astrophysics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics, Statistical and Nonlinear Physics

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/b3bfb10602d8d1f05c6b5ab6eb6b9549adc2e9fd

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In Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics

Citations in the corpus

Advances in quantum cryptography (2019, unknown): “The possibly interplay of quantum mechanics with general (or special) relativity can be studied in this context [358, 359].”
Micius quantum experiments in space (2022, methodology): “…at distances that were previously inaccessible on the ground, such as long-range Bell tests (Bell, 1964) on human free will (Hall, 2010; BIG Bell Test Collaboration, 2018; Cao et al., 2018) and the probing of the interaction of quantum mechanics with general relativity (Rideout et al., 2012).”
Progress in satellite quantum key distribution (2017, background): “The placement of quantum optics technologies on satellites also enables various fundamental physics experiments [20], such as placing experimental bounds on the effect of gravity on quantum systems as they traverse a changing gravitational potential [119, 120] .”