Reduced state of the field and classicality of quantum Gaussian evolution

TL;DR

This paper derives exact conditions for when quantum Gaussian evolution of light behaves classically, using a mesoscopic theory of the reduced state of the field, with implications for quantum optics and information.

Contribution

It develops a framework based on mesoscopic theory to precisely determine classicality conditions for Gaussian quantum evolutions of light.

Findings

Derived exact classicality conditions for Gaussian quantum evolution.

Applied the framework to examples like thermal operations and dissipative engineering.

Reconceptualized mesoscopic theory as a tool for probing classicality.

Abstract

The notion of classicality of quantum evolution of light is an object of both conceptual and practical importance. The main goal of this work is to derive the exact conditions for the classicality of quantum Gaussian evolution, i.e. the evolution of Gaussian states of light and their convex combinations, a model which is of great significance in quantum optics and information. Several examples, ranging from Gaussian thermal operations to entanglement-maximizing dissipative engineering, are discussed. Our results are obtained using the recently introduced mesoscopic theory of the reduced state of the field, which was originally devised as as a description of macroscopic quantum fields. Here, to make the framework suitable for our goal, we redevelop it as a tool for probing classicality, which constitutes our second main contribution.