Enhanced observability of quantum post-exponential decay using distant detectors

Abstract

We study the elusive transition from exponential to post-exponential (algebraic) decay of the probability density of a quantum particle emitted by an exponentially decaying source, in one dimension. The main finding is that the probability density at the transition time, and thus its observability, increases with the distance of the detector from the source, up to a critical distance beyond which exponential decay is no longer observed. Solvable models provide explicit expressions for the dependence of the transition on resonance and observational parameters, facilitating the choice of optimal conditions.

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• Energy uncertainty of the final state of a decay process
• The Lee model: a tool to study decays
• Classical picture of post-exponential decay
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• Non-exponential decay in Quantum Mechanics and Quantum Field Theory
• Emulating non-Hermitian dynamics in a finite non-dissipative quantum system