Unbiased Estimation of Conditional Covariance for Quantum Optomechanics

Abstract

Continuous measurements can prepare macroscopic mechanical oscillators in conditional quantum states, but their covariance is difficult to verify. The conventional retrodictive estimator assumes a forward--backward covariance symmetry and can be biased, because physical dynamics such as feedback damping reduces the observability of the state from future records. Here, we derive an exact linear-Gaussian estimator from causal, retrodictive, and smoothed trajectories. For a milligram-scale mirror, it agrees with a Riccati prediction based on parameters fixed independently, while the conventional estimate exhibits a large bias in the covariance-space metric, $d_M \sim 5$. Our method paves the way toward unbiased testing of macroscopic entanglement within a calibrated linear-Gaussian model, which will be applicable to tabletop mirrors as well as gravitational-wave kg-scale test masses.