Coherent-light-boosted, sub-shot noise, quantum interferometry

We present in this paper a new scheme for optical interferometry. We utilize coherent-beam-stimulated two-mode squeezed light, which interacts with a phase shifter and is then squeezed again before detection. Our theoretical device has the potential to reach far below the shot-noise limit in phase sensitivity. This new proposal avoids the pitfalls of other setups, such as difficulty in creating the required resource. Furthermore, our scheme requires no complicated detection protocol, relying instead only on simple intensity measurement. Also, bright, coherent sources ‘boost’ squeezed light, creating a very sensitive device. This hybrid scheme relies on no unknown components and can be constructed with current technology. In this paper, we present our analysis of this relatively straightforward device, using the operator propagation method. We derive the phase sensitivity and provide a simple numerical example of the power of our new proposal. Sensitivity to unknown phase shifts scales as a shotnoise-limited Mach–Zehnder interferometer, multiplied by a sub-Heisenberg contribution from the squeezed light. 3 Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed. New Journal of Physics 12 (2010) 083014 1367-2630/10/083014+09$30.00 © IOP Publishing Ltd and Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft