Quantum optomechanics of lossy bodies: general approach and structured squeezed vacuum effects

TL;DR

This paper develops a formalism for quantum optomechanics of lossy bodies, showing how engineered quantum fluctuations can induce non-classical forces on macroscopic objects without mean fields.

Contribution

It introduces a general approach to analyze quantum forces on lossy objects driven by structured squeezed vacuum states, extending beyond thermal equilibrium.

Findings

Quantum fluctuations can induce forces without mean electromagnetic fields.

Engineered quantum states break rotational symmetry of fluctuations.

The formalism applies to realistic material parameters and predicts observable effects.

Abstract

We investigate the overall optomechanical force experienced by a macroscopic lossy object in free space under external quantum illumination. To this end, utilizing the Modified Langevin Noise Formalism (MLNF), we derive the time-averaged expectation value of the Maxwell stress tensor for a non-equilibrium scenario in which the incoming scattering field is prepared in an arbitrary mixed quantum state, while the medium-assisted field is maintained in local thermal equilibrium. In the limit of full radiation-matter thermal equilibrium, our expression exactly recovers the well-known fluctuation-dissipation relation governing the Casimir effect, and, under coherent illumination, it yields the standard classical radiation pressure. We demonstrate that by driving the scattering field with an anisotropic, multimode squeezed vacuum state, the spatial profile of the electromagnetic quantum fluctuations can be engineered to exhibit broken rotational symmetry, thereby inducing a purely quantum mechanical force acting on the object. Such mechanical interaction is generated in the strict absence of a mean field, $\langle\hat{\mathbf{E}}\rangle=0$, and its non-classical nature is evidenced by its reliance on second-order field correlations $\langle\hat{\mathbf{E}}^2\rangle$, unlike classical optical radiation pressure governed by the squared mean field $\langle\hat{\mathbf{E}}\rangle^2$. Applying this exact formulation to a homogeneous lossy sphere, we demonstrate the experimental feasibility of the effect using realistic material parameters and optical estimations. Ultimately, we establish a general formalism for macroscopic quantum optomechanics that operates beyond the constraints of thermal equilibrium, enabling the prediction of regimes where the purely quantum force circumvents classical mean fields and shot noise while preserving the object's macroscopic quantum coherence.