Gravitational effects in macroscopic quantum systems (Charis Anastopoulos)
Channel: Academy of Athens
Date: 12/02/2022

Tuesday 8 February 2022

Charis Anastopoulos
Department of Physics, University of Patras

Abstract:

The study of gravitational effects in macroscopic quantum systems provides information about the interplay between quantum theory and gravity. It will be accessible in the near future, in both tabletop and space-based experiments. The key issue is to establish experimentally how a quantum distribution of matter gravitates, and to analyze the implications of such experiments to fundamental physics. We describe the key notion of a gravitational cat state, and explain why the most conservative assumption about the gravitational field generated by quantum systems predicts gravity-induced entanglement generation, Rabi oscillations, and other phenomena. We analyze current controversies and consider models of gravitational decoherence that lead to alternative predictions. Finally, we present the Deep Space Quantum Link, a proposed NASA program to explore the interplay of gravity and quantum theory at deep space length-scales of the order of 10^5 km.

Talk presented at the Research Center for Astronomy and Applied Mathematics of the Academy of Athens