When light makes quantum jumps: tracing coherence between macroscopic states
Light trapped inside an optical cavity can switch abruptly between two very different states – one bright, the other almost dark. In a new theoretical study, Th. K. Mavrogordatos at the Department of Physics, Stockholm University, proposes a method for probing the quantum coherence behind these remarkable jumps.
Quantum physics is usually associated with phenomena at the scale of individual atoms and particles. Yet quantum effects can also emerge in systems involving light on a much larger scale. In his study, Statistical properties of quantum jumps between macroscopic states of light: Reading an operational coherence record, Mavrogordatos explores how the quantum properties of light can be investigated as it switches between two distinct macroscopic states. The proposed approach could offer new ways to study how quantum coherence evolves during these transitions.
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Themistoklis Mavrogordatos, guest researcher, Department of Physics
Statistical properties of quantum jumps between macroscopic states of light: Reading an operational coherence record ScienceDirect
Last updated: 2026-11-05
Source: Department of Physics