Quantum Institute Seminar: Urbasi Sinha

Abstract:

The first experiment describes a precision test for Born rule for probabilities in quantum mechanics. The quadratic nature of the Born probability expression entails that interference occurs in pairs of paths. We tested the correctness of Born rule by testing for the presence or
absence of genuine three-path interference using single photons and a triple slit aperture. The consequences of a detection of even a small three-way interference in the quantum mechanical null prediction are tremendous. A non-zero result would mean that quantum mechanics is only approximate; in the same way that the double slit experiment proves that classical physics is only an approximation to the true law of nature. This would give us an important hint on how to generalize quantum mechanics and open a new window to the world.
In this talk, I will show results that bound the possible violation of Born’s rule and multi-path interference in quantum mechanics and will point out ways to obtain a tighter experimental bound.[1,2,3,4]
Next I will describe the usage of the triple slit system to demonstrate a stable Young-type photonic qutrit. We have used our qutrit system to perform the first ever experimental verification of the Aharon-Vaidman quantum game which exemplifies the advantage of using
simple quantum systems to outperform classical strategies. [5]

1. Ruling out Multi-Order Interference in Quantum Mechanics, U.Sinha et al. Science 329 418- 421, 2010.

2. Born Rules, U.Sinha, in 75 Years of Quantum Entanglement: Foundation and Information Theoretic Applications, AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol.1384, pp 254-261, New York, 2011.

3. A Triple slit test for Quantum Mechanics, U.Sinha et al. Physics in Canada, 66 No.2, April- June 2010.

4. Testing Born’s rule in Quantum mechanics with a triple slit experiment, U.Sinha et al. arXiv: 0811.2068. in Foundations of Probability and Physics-5, AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 1101, pp. 200-207, New-York, 2009.

5. Playing the Aharon Vaidman Quantum Game using a Young type photonic qutrit, P.Kolenderski et al. arXiv:1107.5828, 2011.