Environmental gravitational decoherence with higher derivative theory

TL;DR

This paper explores how higher derivative gravitational theories induce decoherence in quantum systems via quadrupole interactions, leading to new dynamics and measurement approaches for gravitational noise.

Contribution

It introduces a higher derivative gravitational model affecting quantum decoherence through quadrupole moments, with derived Langevin and master equations for the system.

Findings

Higher derivatives modify the decoherence basis.

Quadrupole measurements can probe gravitational decoherence.

Derived equations describe open quantum dynamics with higher derivative gravity.

Abstract

We discuss the decoherence in a quantum system induced by interaction with gravitational degrees of freedom that are part of a higher derivative theory. The deformation of a mass distribution due to gravitational waves acquires naturally a mass quadrupole moment. This adds higher derivative dynamics of the quadrupole moment to the unitary evolution of the system, where the quadrupole moment oscillates with the gravitational frequencies following a higher derivative theory. The consequence of higher derivatives in the dynamics is that the system is described by four canonical variables. This departure from the usual particle position and momentum operators gives an entirely different interpretation of the decoherence basis. This model focuses on the open dynamics of the quadrupole moment, rather than on individual particles. As such, a short example is given to utilize quadrupole measurements to probe gravitational decoherence and noise. We first derive a Langevin equation for a lower derivative model and show how higher derivatives naturally emerge on the boundary. A quantum master equation is derived for the emerging quadrupole moment, considering that the environment is a higher derivative theory of gravity.