Necessary and Sufficient Classicality Conditions on Photon Number Distributions

Simon, R and Selvadoray, Mary and Arvind, * and Mukunda, N (1997) Necessary and Sufficient Classicality Conditions on Photon Number Distributions. [Preprint]

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Abstract

We exploit results on the classical Stieltjes moment problem to obtain completely explicit necessary and sufficient conditions for the photon number distribution p(n) of a radiation field mode to be classical. These conditions are given in two forms - respectively local and global in the individual photon number probabilities. Central to the first approach is the recognition of the important fact that the quantities n!p(n) are moments of a quasiprobability distribution, notwithstanding the fact that p(n)'s can by themselves be considered as a probability distribution over the nonnegative integers. This leads to local classicality conditions involving p(n)'s for only a small number of values of n. This local approach enables us to present detailed quantitative statements on the connection between nonclassicality and oscillations in the photon number distribution. The second approach is in terms of the traditional factorial moments of p(n). Equivalence of the two approaches is established.

Item Type:	Preprint
Department/Centre:	Division of Physical & Mathematical Sciences > Centre for Theoretical Studies (Ceased to exist at the end of 2003) Division of Physical & Mathematical Sciences > Physics
Date Deposited:	23 Jul 2004
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2010 04:13
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/869

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