Gravity in the quantum lab
Gravity in the quantum lab
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DOI：
10.1080/23746149.2017.1383184
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发表时间：
2018-01-01
影响因子：
6
通讯作者：
Fuentes, Ivette
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Howl, Richard;Hackermueller, Lucia;Fuentes, Ivette
上世纪初，量子力学（QM）和广义相对论（GR）这两个革命性的新理论推动了牛顿力学的发展。这两种理论都改变了我们对物理现象的看法，量子力学准确地预测了小长度尺度上发生的实验结果，而广义相对论则正确地描述了较大长度尺度上的观察结果。然而，尽管每种理论在各自的体系中都具有令人印象深刻的预测能力，但它们的统一仍然没有得到解决。统一它们的理论和建议是存在的，但我们缺乏对真正统一理论的实验指导。在量子效应变得相关的小尺度上探测广义相对论尤其成问题，但最近人们越来越有兴趣在相对论效应很重要的大尺度上探测相反的状态，即量子力学。这主要是因为量子物理学的实验技术近年来随着量子技术的前景而迅速发展。在这里，我们回顾了量子实验的实验和理论工作的最新进展，这些实验将能够探测引力对量子特性的相对论效应。我们特别强调使用弯曲时空量子场论（QFTCS）框架来描述这些实验的重要性。例如，最近使用 QFTCS 的理论工作表明，这些量子实验也可用于增强引力效应的测量，例如引力波 (GW)。对此类增强功能的验证以及量子实验中的其他 QFTCS 预测将为量子引力的这种极限情况提供首次直接验证。
At the beginning of the previous century, Newtonian mechanics was advanced by two new revolutionary theories, Quantum Mechanics (QM) and General Relativity (GR). Both theories have transformed our view of physical phenomena, with QM accurately predicting the results of experiments taking place at small length scales, and GR correctly describing observations at larger length scales. However, despite the impressive predictive power of each theory in their respective regimes, their unification still remains unresolved. Theories and proposals for their unification exist but we are lacking experimental guidance towards the true unifying theory. Probing GR at small length scales where quantum effects become relevant is particularly problematic but recently there has been a growing interest in probing the opposite regime, QM at large scales where relativistic effects are important. This is principally because experimental techniques in quantum physics have developed rapidly in recent years with the promise of quantum technologies. Here we review recent advances in experimental and theoretical work on quantum experiments that will be able to probe relativistic effects of gravity on quantum properties. In particular, we emphasise the importance of using the framework of Quantum Field Theory in Curved Spacetime (QFTCS) in describing these experiments. For example, recent theoretical work using QFTCS has illustrated that these quantum experiments could also be used to enhance measurements of gravitational effects, such as Gravitational Waves (GWs). Verification of such enhancements, as well as other QFTCS predictions in quantum experiments, would provide the first direct validation of this limiting case of quantum gravity.