Sequential propagation of a single photon through five measurement contexts in a three-path interferometer

2023/08/04 by Holger F. Hofmann, Hofmann, Holger F. · 3 citations
Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #FOS: Physical sciences #Mechanical and Optical Resonators #Optics (physics.optics) #Quantum Information and Cryptography #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum Physics (quant-ph)

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2308.02086

openalex publication_date 2023/08/04 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

Quantum contextuality describes scenarios in which it is impossible to explain the experimental evidence in terms of a measurement independent reality. Here, I introduce a three-path interferometer in which all five contexts needed for a demonstration of contextuality are realized in sequence. It is then possible to observe a paradoxical situation where the paths connecting input ports to their corresponding output ports appear to be blocked by destructive interference. It is shown that the conditional currents observed in weak measurements provide a consistent explanation of the paradox, indicating that weak values might help to bridge the gap between wavelike propagation effects and local particle detection.

Cited by

• Characterization of non-classical particle propagation using superpositions of position and momentum
• Quantum coherence and negative quasi probabilities in a contextual three-path interferometer
• Experimental evidence for the physical delocalization of individual photons in an interferometer

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