Estimation of Gaussian random displacement using non-Gaussian states

TL;DR

This paper explores how non-Gaussian states can improve the simultaneous estimation of Gaussian displacements in quantum systems, potentially enhancing quantum error correction methods.

Contribution

It derives bounds on estimation errors using non-Gaussian states and demonstrates that simple non-Gaussian states can outperform Gaussian-only strategies.

Findings

Non-Gaussian states can beat Gaussian bounds in displacement estimation.

Simple non-Gaussian states like single-photon states are effective.

The results highlight the importance of non-Gaussianity in quantum error correction.

Abstract

In continuous-variable quantum information processing, quantum error correction of Gaussian errors requires simultaneous estimation of both quadrature components of displacements on phase space. However, quadrature operators $x$ and $p$ are non-commutative conjugate observables, whose simultaneous measurement is prohibited by the uncertainty principle. Gottesman-Kitaev-Preskill (GKP) error correction deals with this problem using complex non-Gaussian states called GKP states. On the other hand, simultaneous estimation of displacement using experimentally feasible non-Gaussian states has not been well studied. In this paper, we consider a multi-parameter estimation problem of displacements assuming an isotropic Gaussian prior distribution and allowing post-selection of measurement outcomes. We derive a lower bound for the estimation error when only Gaussian operations are used, and show that even simple non-Gaussian states such as single-photon states can beat this bound. Based on Ghosh's bound, we also obtain a lower bound for the estimation error when the maximum photon number of the input state is given. Our results reveal the role of non-Gaussianity in the estimation of displacements, and pave the way toward the error correction of Gaussian errors using experimentally feasible non-Gaussian states.