Proposal for locality test of Aharonov-Bohm effect via Andreev interferometer without a loop

Abstract

We propose a quantitative test of the quantum nonlocality in the electromagnetic interaction that generates the Aharonov-Bohm effect. For this purpose, we derive an interaction Lagrangian based on the local action of gauge-invariant quantities only, and compare it with the standard potential-based ("nonlocal") Lagrangian. It is shown that the two models provide identical results for any phenomena involving classical equations of motion or topological quantum phases. Interestingly, we find an example violating this equivalence, that is, the interference of single charges coproduced from two independent sources. Whereas a well-defined phase shift of the interference is predicted in the "local" model, the standard nonlocal Lagrangian does not provide a gauge-invariant phase shift. This implies that an observation of the interference in the proposed setup can rule out the gauge-dependent potential-based model. This result has profound implications as it can settle the issue of dynamical nonlocality in the quantum electromagnetic interaction.

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References in corpus (4)

• Probing Correlations, Indistinguishability and Entanglement in Microwave Two-Photon Interference
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• Comment on "Role of Potentials in the Aharonov-Bohm Effect"
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Cited by in corpus (7)

• The Aharonov-Bohm phase is locally generated (like all other quantum phases)
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• Gauge invariance of the local phase in the Aharonov-Bohm interference: quantum electrodynamic approach
• Demystifying the nonlocality problem in Aharonov-Bohm effect
• Electric Aharonov-Bohm effect without a loop in a Cooper pair box
• Aharonov-Bohm effect mediated by massive photons
• Geometric phase of a moving dipole under a magnetic field at a distance