"Asking photons where they've been" -- the DFBV experiment

In summary, the experiment showed that some of the photons that went through the interferometer did not follow a continuous trajectory, but instead showed evidence of being "inside" the interferometer but never "outside" of it. This surprising result was explained using the two-state vector formalism of quantum mechanics.
  • #1
RUTA
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Here's an experiment using weak measurements on photons in a "nested interferometer." They conclude:

In conclusion, we have performed direct measurements which shed new light on the question: Where were the photons passing through an interferometer? The main results are presented in Fig. 2B. The photons themselves tell us where they have been. And the story they tell is surprising. The photons do not always follow continuous trajectories. Some of them have been inside the nested interferometer (otherwise they could not have known the frequencies fA, fB), but they never entered and never left the nested interferometer, since otherwise they could not avoid the imprints of frequencies fE and fF of mirrors E and F leading photons into and out of the interferometer. Only the description with both forward and backward evolving quantum states provides a simple and intuitive picture of pre- and postselected quantum particles.

http://arxiv.org/abs/1304.7469

Here's the abstract:

Quantum mechanics does not provide a clear answer to the question: What was the past of a photon which went through an interferometer? Various welcher weg measurements, delayed-choice which-path experiments and weak-measurements of photons in interferometers presented the past of a photon as a trajectory or a set of trajectories. We have carried out experimental weak measurements of the paths of photons going through a nested Mach-Zehnder interferometer which show a different picture: the past of a photon is not a set of continuous trajectories. The photons tell us that they have been in the parts of the interferometer which they could not have possibly reached! Our results lead to rejection of a "common sense" approach to the past of a quantum particle. On the other hand, they have a simple explanation within the framework of the two-state vector formalism of quantum theory.
 
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  • #3
We had this discussion recently in another thread. I'm a bit surprised by this abstract, because people investigating photons should not talk about them in such a misguiding way as if they were comparable to the behavior of classical particles. Particularly the idea of a "path" (or even "trajectory") of a photon is to be taken with a grain of salt (at least). As physicists we should stick to observable facts, and these are interference patterns or their vanishing and the postselection of subensembles making use of entangled photon pairs. Nothing whatsoever is changed retrocausally. The interference pattern or its vanishing is an established fact by storing it from the measurement.

In the other thread someone pointed to a nice paper about precisely this point:

Bram Gaasbeek, Demystifying the Delayed Choice Experiments
http://arxiv.org/abs/1007.3977v1
 
  • #4
vanhees71 said:
We had this discussion recently in another thread. I'm a bit surprised by this abstract, because people investigating photons should not talk about them in such a misguiding way as if they were comparable to the behavior of classical particles. Particularly the idea of a "path" (or even "trajectory") of a photon is to be taken with a grain of salt (at least). As physicists we should stick to observable facts, and these are interference patterns or their vanishing and the postselection of subensembles making use of entangled photon pairs. Nothing whatsoever is changed retrocausally. The interference pattern or its vanishing is an established fact by storing it from the measurement.

We certainly think of photons as possessing continuous trajectories through spacetime when we set up experiments or use a TV remote, we "aim" our EM sources towards mirrors and TV's and remove obstacles in their "path." So, why not highlight the fact that experiments can violate the way we think about the exchange of EM energy? Why would we want to squelch intellectual inquiry by requiring physicists to "stick to observable facts?"

P.S. This experiment does not use "entangled photon pairs." If done one photon at a time, the results should also obtain.
 
  • #5
There is some commentary on the formalism of retrodictive quantum states here:

Quantum instruments as a foundation for both states and observables
Justin Dressel, Andrew N. Jordan
http://arxiv.org/abs/1305.2816
 
  • #6
I would have thought that photons, as they travel at the speed of photons (light) have no concept of time, time does not pass for a photon, as such asking it were it was in the 'past' is pointless.
A photon has never 'been' anywhere, for a photon, it exists and ceases to exist at the same 'instant'.

(I could be, and am, often completely wrong about these things):)
 

Related to "Asking photons where they've been" -- the DFBV experiment

1. What is the DFBV experiment?

The DFBV experiment, also known as "Asking photons where they've been," is a quantum mechanics experiment that aims to demonstrate the wave-particle duality of light. It involves sending a photon through a double-slit apparatus and then using a detector to determine which slit the photon passed through.

2. What is the purpose of the DFBV experiment?

The purpose of the DFBV experiment is to study the behavior of photons, which are particles of light, and observe how they exhibit both wave-like and particle-like properties. This experiment helps us better understand the fundamental nature of light and its behavior in the quantum world.

3. How does the DFBV experiment work?

The DFBV experiment involves sending photons, one at a time, through a double-slit apparatus. The photons can either behave as waves, passing through both slits simultaneously, or as particles, passing through only one slit. A detector is placed at the back of the apparatus to determine which slit the photon passed through, and this information is used to track the path of the photon.

4. What is the significance of the results from the DFBV experiment?

The results of the DFBV experiment show that photons can behave as both waves and particles, depending on how they are observed. This highlights the wave-particle duality of light, which is a fundamental concept in quantum mechanics. The experiment also helps us understand the limitations of classical physics in explaining the behavior of particles at the quantum level.

5. How does the DFBV experiment relate to other quantum mechanics experiments?

The DFBV experiment is closely related to other experiments that demonstrate the wave-particle duality of light, such as the double-slit experiment and the Mach-Zehnder interferometer. These experiments all provide evidence for the strange and counterintuitive behavior of particles at the quantum level, and help us develop a better understanding of the fundamental nature of the universe.

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