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  • Letter
  • Open Access

Quantum sensitivity of parametric oscillators

Alex Gu1,*, Jamison Sloan1,2, Charles Roques-Carmes1,2,†, Seou Choi1, Eric I. Rosenthal2, Michael Horodynski3, Yannick Salamin1,3,4, Jelena Vučković2, and Marin Soljačić1,3

  • *Contact author: alexgu@mit.edu
  • †Contact author: chrc@stanford.edu
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Phys. Rev. Research 7, L022056 – Published 6 June, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.7.L022056

Abstract

Many quantum systems exhibit high sensitivity to their initial conditions, where microscopic quantum fluctuations can significantly influence macroscopic observables. Understanding how quantum states may influence the behavior of nonlinear dynamic systems may open new avenues in controlling light-matter interactions. To explore this issue, we analyze the sensitivity of a fundamental quantum optical process – parametric oscillation – to quantum initializations. Focusing on optical parametric oscillators (OPOs), we demonstrate that the quantum statistics of arbitrary initial states are imprinted in the early-stage dynamics and can persist in the steady-state probabilities. We derive the “quantum sensitivity” of parametric oscillators, linking the initial quantum state to the system's steady-state outcomes, highlighting how losses and parametric gain govern the system's quantum sensitivity. Moreover, we show that these findings extend beyond OPOs to a broader class of nonlinear systems, including Josephson junction based superconducting circuits. Our work opens the way to a new class of experiments that can test the sensitivity of macroscopic systems to quantum initial conditions and offers a pathway for controlling systems with quantum degrees of freedom.

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Phys. Rev. Research 7, L022056– Published 6 June, 2025
  • Received 6 December 2024
  • Accepted 17 March 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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