How to perform the coherent measurement of a curved phase space by continuous isotropic measurement. I. Spin and the Kraus-operator geometry of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo …

The generalized <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>Q</mml:mi></mml:math>-function of a spin system can be considered the outcome probability distribution of a state subjected to a measurement represented by the spin-coherent-state (SCS) positive-operator-valued measure (POVM). As fundamental as the SCS POVM is to the 2-sphere phase-space representation of spin systems, it has only recently been reported that the SCS POVM can be performed for any spin system by continuous isotropic measurement of the three total spin components [E. Shojaee, C. S. Jackson, C. A. Riofrio, A. Kalev, and I. H. Deutsch, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 130404 (2018)]. This article develops the theoretical details of the continuous isotropic measurement and places it within the general context of curved-phase-space correspondences for quantum systems. The analysis is in terms of the Kraus operators that develop over the course of a continuous isotropic measurement. The Kraus operators of any spin <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mi>j</mml:mi></mml:math> are shown to represent elements of the Lie group <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo><mml:mo>&amp;#x2245;</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">p</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">i</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">n</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>3</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math>, a complex version of the usual unitary operators that represent elements of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">U</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo><mml:mo>&amp;#x2245;</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">p</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">i</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">n</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>3</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">R</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math>. Consequently, the associated POVM elements represent points in the symmetric space <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">U</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo><mml:mi class="MJX-variant" mathvariant="normal">&amp;#x2216;</mml:mi><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math>, which can be recognized as the 3-hyperboloid. Three equivalent stochastic techniques, (Wiener) path integral, (Fokker-Planck) diffusion equation, and stochastic differential equations, are applied to show that the continuous isotropic POVM quickly limits to the SCS POVM, placing spherical phase space at the boundary of the fundamental Lie group <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math> in an operationally meaningful way. Two basic mathematical tools are used to analyze the evolving Kraus operators, the Maurer-Cartan form, modified for stochastic applications, and the Cartan, decomposition associated with the symmetric pair <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">U</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math> ⊂ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math>. Informed by these tools, the three schochastic techniques are applied directly to the Kraus operators in a representation-independent – and therefore geometric – way (independent of any spectral information about the spin components).The Kraus-operator-centric, geometric treatment applies not just to <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">U</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math> ⊂ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">S</mml:mi><mml:mi mathvariant="normal">L</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">(</mml:mo><mml:mn>2</mml:mn><mml:mo>,</mml:mo><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mml:mi mathvariant="double-struck">C</mml:mi></mml:mrow></mml:mrow><mml:mo stretchy="false">)</mml:mo></mml:math>, but also to any compact semisimple Lie group and its complexification. The POVM associated with the continuous isotropic measurement of Lie-group generators thus corresponds to a type-IV globally Riemannian symmetric space and limits to the POVM of generalized coherent states. This generalization is the focus of a sequel to this article.