Experimental demonstration of delayed-choice decoherence suppression

Abstract

Wheeler's delayed-choice experiment illustrates vividly that the observer plays a central role in quantum physics by demonstrating that complementarity or wave-particle duality can be enforced even after the photon has already entered the interferometer. The delayed-choice quantum eraser experiment further demonstrates that complementarity can be enforced even after detection of a quantum system, elucidating the foundational nature of complementarity in quantum physics. However, the applicability of the delayed-choice method for practical quantum information protocols continues to be an open question. Here, we introduce and experimentally demonstrate the delayed-choice decoherence suppression protocol, in which the decision to suppress decoherence on an entangled two-qubit state is delayed until after the decoherence and even after the detection of a qubit. Our result suggests a new way to tackle Markovian decoherence in a delayed manner, applicable for practical entanglement distribution over a dissipative channel. © 2014 Macmillan Publishers Limited.