| Issue |
EPL
Volume 94, Number 6, June 2011
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Article Number | 68007 | |
| Number of page(s) | 5 | |
| Section | Interdisciplinary Physics and Related Areas of Science and Technology | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1209/0295-5075/94/68007 | |
| Published online | 08 June 2011 | |
Ultimate quantum bounds on mass measurements with a nano-mechanical resonator
1
Université de Toulouse, UPS, Laboratoire de Physique Théorique (IRSAMC) - F-31062 Toulouse, France, EU
2
CNRS, LPT (IRSAMC) - F-31062 Toulouse, France, EU
Received:
31
January
2011
Accepted:
10
May
2011
I establish the fundamental lower bound on the mass that can be measured with a nano-mechanical resonator in a given quantum state based on the fundamental quantum Cramér-Rao bound, and identify the quantum states which will allow the largest sensitivity for a given maximum energy. I show that with existing carbon nanotube resonators it should be possible in principle to measure a thousandth of the mass of an electron, and future improvements might allow to reach a regime where one can measure the relativistic change of mass due to absorption of a single photon, or the creation of a chemical bond.
PACS: 85.85.+j – Micro- and nano-electromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS) and devices / 07.75.+h – Mass spectrometers / 03.67.-a – Quantum information
© EPLA, 2011
Current usage metrics show cumulative count of Article Views (full-text article views including HTML views, PDF and ePub downloads, according to the available data) and Abstracts Views on Vision4Press platform.
Data correspond to usage on the plateform after 2015. The current usage metrics is available 48-96 hours after online publication and is updated daily on week days.
Initial download of the metrics may take a while.