Quantum continual measurements: the spectrum of the output

Abstract

When a quantum system is monitored in continuous time, the result of the measurement is a stochastic process. When the output process is stationary, at least in the long run, the spectrum of the process can be introduced and its properties studied. A typical continual measurement for quantum optical systems is the so called homodyne detection. In this paper we show how the Heisenberg uncertainty relations give rise to characteristic bounds on the possible homodyne spectra and we discuss how this is related to the typical quantum phenomenon of squeezing.