The Counterfactual Photoelectric Effect

TL;DR

This paper proposes a counterfactual energy transfer method using a modified interferometer, enabling photoelectric effects without photon absorption, with potential applications in non-local work and quantum object constitution.

Contribution

It introduces a novel counterfactual protocol for dissociating energy from photons, extending it with the quantum Zeno effect to generate a stream of photoelectrons.

Findings

Demonstrates a photoelectric effect without photon absorption

Uses quantum Zeno effect to recycle photons and produce photoelectrons

Suggests potential applications in non-local energy transfer

Abstract

We explore a counterfactual protocol for energy transfer. A modified version of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer dissociates a photon's position and energy into separate channels, resulting in a photoelectric effect in one channel without the absorption of a photon. We use the quantum Zeno effect to extend our results by recycling the same photon through the system and obtain a stream of photoelectrons. If dissociation of properties such as energy can be demonstrated experimentally, there may be a variety of novel energy-related applications that may arise from the capacity to do non-local work. The dissociation of intrinsic properties, like energy, from elementary particles may also lead to theoretical discussions of the constitution of quantum objects.