Influence of detector motion on discrimination between photon polarizations

TL;DR

This paper studies how the motion of detectors affects the ability to distinguish photon polarizations, analyzing optimal success probabilities and the Holevo bound for different discrimination strategies.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the impact of detector velocity on polarization discrimination, including explicit calculations of success probabilities and the Holevo bound.

Findings

Optimal success probability varies with detector velocity.

Holevo bound and success probabilities change synchronously.

Motion influences the fundamental limits of polarization discrimination.

Abstract

We investigate the discrimination between photon polarizations when measured by moving detectors. Both unambiguous and minimum-error discriminations are considered, and we analyze the the optimal successful (correct) probability as a function of the apparatus' velocity. The Holevo bound for polarization discrimination is also discussed and explicit calculation shows that the Holevo bound and the optimal successful (correct) probability for unambiguous (minimum-error) discrimination simultaneously increase or decrease.