We investigated the characteristics of molecular orientation induced by a nonresonant two-color femtosecond laser field. By analyzing the rotational dynamics of asymmetric linear molecules, we revealed that the critical parameter in characterizing the molecular orientation was the hyperpolarizability of molecules that selected the excitation paths of rotational states between parity-changing and parity-conserving transitions. Especially, in the case of molecules with small hyperpolarizability, a significant enhancement of orientation was achieved at the half-rotational period, instead of the full-rotational period. This deeper understanding of the hyperpolarizability-dependent characteristics of molecular orientation in a two-color scheme can provide an effective method to achieve significantly enhanced field-free orientation for various polar molecules.

Despite its title and its general presentation, the paper by Vergeles and Turitsyn [Phys. Rev. A 83, 061801 (2011)] proves that rogue waves never exist in purely linear telecommunication systems.

We feel that the main claim made in the abstract of the preceding Comment [Phys. Rev. A 84, 067801 (2011)] is wrong. Using results obtained in our paper [Phys. Rev. A 83, 061801 (2011)], we prove that rogue waves with amplitudes much larger than the average level can be observed during a short period of time in purely linear propagation regimes in optical fiber systems.

Paramagnetic Faraday rotation is a powerful technique for atom sensing widely used in quantum nondemolition measurements, fundamental symmetry tests, and other precision measurements. We demonstrate the use of a multipass optical cell for Faraday rotation spectroscopy and observe polarization rotation in excess of 100 rad from spin-polarized Rb vapor. Unlike optical cavities, multipass cells have a deterministic number of light passes and can be used to measure large optical rotations. We also observe a tenfold suppression of transverse spin relaxation when Rb atoms are placed in a coherent superposition state immune to spin-exchange collisions.

We consider general settings of Bell inequality experiments with many parties, where each party chooses from a finite number of measurement settings each with a finite number of outcomes. We investigate the constraints that Bell inequalities place upon the correlations possible in local hidden variable theories using a geometrical picture of correlations. We show that local hidden variable theories can be characterized in terms of limited computational expressiveness, which allows us to characterize families of Bell inequalities. The limited computational expressiveness for many settings (each with many outcomes) generalizes previous results about the many-party situation each with a choice of two possible measurements (each with two outcomes). Using this computational picture we present generalizations of the Popescu-Rohrlich nonlocal box for many parties and nonbinary inputs and outputs at each site. Finally, we comment on the effect of preprocessing on measurement data in our generalized setting and show that it becomes problematic outside of the binary setting, in that it allows local hidden variable theories to simulate maximally nonlocal correlations such as those of these generalized Popescu-Rohrlich nonlocal boxes.

Coherent feedback control (CFC) of multipartite optical entangled states produced by a nondegenerate optical parametric amplifier is theoretically studied. The features of the quantum correlations of amplitude and phase quadratures among more than two entangled optical modes can be controlled by tuning the transmissivity of the optical beam splitter in the CFC loop. The physical conditions to enhance continuous variable multipartite entanglement of optical fields utilizing the CFC loop are obtained. The numeric calculations based on feasible physical parameters of realistic systems provide direct references for the design of experimental devices.

We present a development of a geometric approach to entanglement indicators. The method is applied to detect genuine multiqubit entanglement. The criteria are given in the form of nonlinear conditions imposed on correlation tensors. Thus they involve directly observable quantities, and in some cases require only few specific measurements to find multiqubit entanglement. The nonlinearity of each of the criteria allows detection of entanglement in wide classes of states. In contrast to entanglement witnesses, which in the space of Hermitian operators define a hyperplane, these conditions define a geometric figure encapsulating the nonfully entangled states within it.

We introduce a general framework for detecting genuine multipartite entanglement and non-full-separability in multipartite quantum systems of arbitrary dimensions based on correlation tensors. Regarding genuine multipartite entanglement, our conditions are comparable to those of previous approaches in the case of qubits, while they show particular strength in the relatively unexplored case of higher-dimensional systems. In the case of non-full-separability, our conditions prove to be advantageous in situations where more than two-body correlations are relevant, where most previous conditions turned out to be weak. Moreover, they allow for the detection of fully bound entangled states. Finally, we also discuss experimentally friendly ways of implementing our conditions, which are based on directly measurable quantities.

Adkins's result [Phys. Rev. D 34, 2489 (1986)] for the time component of the renormalized vertex operator in Coulomb-gauge QED is separated according to its tensor structure and some of the Feynman parameter integrals are carried out analytically, yielding a form suited for numerical bound-state QED calculations. This modified form is applied to the evaluation of the self-energy shift to the binding energy in hydrogenic ions of high nuclear charge.

A cold nanoscale resonator coupled to a system of nuclear spins can induce spin relaxation. In the low-temperature limit where spin-lattice interactions are “frozen out,” spontaneous emission by nuclear spins into a resonant mechanical mode can become the dominant mechanism for cooling the spins to thermal equilibrium with their environment. We provide a theoretical framework for the study of resonator-induced cooling of nuclear spins in this low-temperature regime. Relaxation equations are derived from first principles, in the limit where energy donated by the spins to the resonator is quickly dissipated into the cold bath that damps it. A physical interpretation of the processes contributing to spin polarization is given. For a system of spins that have identical couplings to the resonator, the interaction Hamiltonian conserves spin angular momentum, and the resonator cannot relax the spins to thermal equilibrium unless this symmetry is broken by the spin Hamiltonian. The mechanism by which such a spin system becomes “trapped” away from thermal equilibrium can be visualized using a semiclassical model, which shows how an indirect spin-spin interaction arises from the coupling of multiple spins to one resonator. The internal spin Hamiltonian can affect the polarization process in two ways: (1) By modifying the structure of the spin-spin correlations in the energy eigenstates, and (2) by splitting the degeneracy within a manifold of energy eigenstates, so that zero-frequency off-diagonal terms in the density matrix are converted to oscillating coherences. Shifting the frequencies of these coherences sufficiently far from zero suppresses the development of resonator-induced correlations within the manifold during polarization from a totally disordered state. Modification of the spin-spin correlations by means of either mechanism affects the strength of the fluctuating spin dipole that drives the resonator. In the case where product states can be chosen as energy eigenstates, spontaneous emission from eigenstate populations into the resonant mode can be interpreted as independent emission by individual spins, and the spins relax exponentially to thermal equilibrium if the development of resonator-induced correlations is suppressed. When the spin Hamiltonian includes a significant contribution from the homonuclear dipolar coupling, the energy eigenstates entail a correlation specific to the coupling network. Simulations of dipole-dipole coupled systems of up to five spins suggest that these systems contain weakly emitting eigenstates that can trap a fraction of the population for time periods $\gg 100/R_0$, where $R_0$ is the rate constant for resonator-enhanced spontaneous emission by a single spin 1/2. Much of the polarization, however, relaxes with rates comparable to $R_0$. A distribution of characteristic high-field chemical shifts tends to increase the relaxation rates of weakly emitting states, enabling transitions to states that can quickly relax to thermal equilibrium. The theoretical framework presented in this paper is illustrated with discussions of spin polarization in the contexts of force-detected nuclear-magnetic-resonance spectroscopy and magnetic-resonance force microscopy.

Competitive inhibition of a resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization process by a resonant four-wave mixing has been observed in Xe atoms. When an intense IR (1064 nm) laser was applied to a sample of Xe which was also being irradiated by a UV laser tuned to the two-photon absorption line of Xe, the two-photon-resonant three-photon ionization signals decreased with increasing IR laser power. This phenomenon is dependent on the resonant states of Xe and the polarization of the two laser beams. Three 6$s$ excited states [5/2]${}_2$, [3/2]${}_2$, and [1/2]${}_0$ were examined. At the [1/2]${}_0$ resonant state, the ion signals were not decreased but slightly increased with the increase of the IR laser power. No suppression of the ion signal was observed at the [5/2]${}_2$ resonant state, when the polarization directions of the lasers were perpendicular to each other. The result of the polarization dependence reflects the selection rules of four-wave mixing. A simple rate equation analysis including the contribution of two-photon ionization from the [1/2]${}_0$ state by the IR laser well represents the IR laser-power dependence of the ion signal.

We theoretically study a possible pairing mechanism for a two-dimensional population imbalanced Fermi gas with short-range repulsive interactions, which can be realized on the upper branch of a Feshbach resonance. We use a well-controlled renormalization-group approach, which allows an unbiased study of the instabilities of imbalanced Fermi liquid without assumption of a broken symmetry and gives a numerical calculation of the transition temperature from microscopic parameters. Our results show a leading superfluid instability in the $p$-wave channel for the majority species. The corresponding mechanism is that there are effective attractive interactions for the majority species, induced by the particle-hole susceptibility of the minority species, where the mismatch of the Fermi surfaces of the two species plays an important role. We also propose an experimental protocol for detecting the $p$-wave superfluidity and discuss the corresponding experimental signatures.

We propose a scheme to probe quantum coherence in the state of a nanocantilever based on its magnetic coupling (mediated by a magnetic tip) with a spinor Bose Einstein condensate (BEC). By mapping the BEC into a rotor, its coupling with the cantilever results in a gyroscopic motion whose properties depend on the state of the cantilever: the dynamics of one of the components of the rotor angular momentum turns out to be strictly related to the presence of quantum coherence in the state of the cantilever. We also suggest a detection scheme relying on Faraday rotation, which produces only a very small back-action on the BEC and is thus suitable for a continuous detection of the cantilever's dynamics.

We investigate the quantum phase transitions for two weakly coupled atom-cavity sites. The interatomic dipole-dipole interaction is considered. Our numerical results show that the dipole-dipole interaction is a crucial parameter for the quantum phase transition. For small atom-cavity detuning, the “superfluid” becomes more and more obvious with the increase of the dipole-dipole interaction. In addition, the strong dipole-dipole interaction can lead the atomic excitation to be suppressed completely, and only the photonic excitation exists for the ground states. When the atom-cavity detuning is comparable with the dipole-dipole interaction, the dipole-dipole interaction enlarges the positive detunings, which is in favor of exhibiting superfluid photonic states. While for the negative detuning, the dipole-dipole interaction will reduce it, and contribute to the formation of the polaritonic insulator states. The cases for extended models have also been briefly analyzed. We also discuss how to find these novel phenomena in future experiments.

The possibility of x-ray emission employing below-threshold-harmonic generation in the nontunneling regime is considered. The interaction of a tightly bound valence electron in a highly charged ion with intense extreme-ultraviolet laser radiation is investigated in the weakly relativistic regime by numerical solution of the two-dimensional relativistically corrected Schrödinger equation. Nondipole effects and the relativistic mass correction are taken into account by expansion of the total Klein-Gordon Hamiltonian up to the second order in the ratio between the electron velocity and the speed of light. The harmonics below the ionization energy of the tightly bound system are found to be emitted with much higher probability than the standard plateau harmonics of loosely bound systems in the tunneling ionization regime for the same photon energy. This paves a path toward coherent hard x rays.

Using the density matrix renormalization group method, we determine the phase diagram of the Bose-Hubbard model with local two- and three-body interactions, describing polar molecules in one-dimensional optical lattices. The difference in the block von Neumann entropy with different system sizes was used to establish the critical points. We found that the quantum critical point position increases with the three-body interaction. We show that the model studied is in the same universality class as the model with pure two-body interactions.

Integration is currently the only feasible route toward scalable photonic quantum processing devices that are sufficiently complex to be genuinely useful in computing, metrology, and simulation. Embedded on-chip detection will be critical to such devices. We demonstrate an integrated photon-number-resolving detector, operating in the telecom band at 1550 nm, employing an evanescently coupled design that allows it to be placed at arbitrary locations within a planar circuit. Up to five photons are resolved in the guided optical mode via absorption from the evanescent field into a tungsten transition-edge sensor. The detection efficiency is $7.2\pm 0.5\%$. The polarization sensitivity of the detector is also demonstrated. Detailed modeling of device designs shows a clear and feasible route to reaching high detection efficiencies.

We report production of ultracold $X{}^1{\Sigma }^{+}(v^{\prime \prime }=0)$ NaCs molecules via photoassociation. We utilize a combination of spectroscopic techniques to determine formation pathways and label ground-state samples. Efficient free-bound excitation occurs due to coupling between $B{}^1\Pi$ and neighboring electronic states in the $\text{Na}3S+\text{Cs}6P$ complex. An $f$-wave shape resonance contributes to formation of a rotationally pure sample of $X{}^1{\Sigma }^{+}(v^{\prime \prime }=0,J^{\prime \prime }=1)$ molecules.

We consider the coherence-vector representation of a bipartite state and obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for a zero-discord state. Based on this, a measure of quantum, classical, and total amount of correlations in bipartite states is proposed in this representation. Analytical expressions for this measure are available for any bipartite states. Our measure of nonclassical correlation coincides with the geometric measure of quantum discord for some particular states.