Speaker
Description
The Wigner function [1] is a quantum mechanical distribution function and lives in phase space. It allows us to evaluate the expectation values of symmetrically ordered operators. Moreover, it is an extremely useful tool [2] to analyze phenomena at the interface of classical and quantum physics. In the present talk, we focus on three such topics: (i) The equivalence principle of general relativity viewed from quantum phase space [3], (ii) the Kasevich-Chu interferometer described by the Wigner function [4], and (iii) the connection between a logarithmic phase singularity, tunneling through a quadratic barrier [5], and Hawking radiation [6].
References:
[1] E.P. Wigner, Phys Rev. 40, 749 (1932).
[2] W.P. Schleich, Quantum Optics in Phase Space (Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, 2001).
[3] E. Kajari et al., Appl. Phys. B 100, 43 (2010).
[4] E. Giese et al., Proceedings of the International School of Physics ‘’Enrico Fermi’’ 188, 171 (2014).
[5] D.M. Heim et al., Phys. Lett. A 377, 1822 (2013).
[6] F. Ullinger et al., AVS Quantum Science, 4 (2022).
