Optimal-speed unitary quantum time evolutions and propagation of light with maximal degree of coherence

Abstract

It is recognized that Grover arrived at his original quantum search algorithm inspired by his comprehension of the interference of classical waves originating from an array of antennas. It is also known that quantum-mechanical characterization of electromagnetic radiation is isomorphic to the treatment of the orientation of a spin-1/2 particle. In this paper, motivated by Grover's original intuition and starting from this mathematical equivalence, we present a quantitative link between the geometry of time-independent optimal-speed Hamiltonian evolutions on the Bloch sphere and the geometry of intensity-preserving propagation of light with maximal degree of coherence on the Poincar\'e sphere. Finally, identifying interference as the fundamental physical ingredient underlying both physical phenomena, we propose that our work can provide in retrospect a quantitative geometric background underlying Grover's powerful intuition.