Measurement-induced manipulation of the quantum-classical border

Abstract

We demonstrate the possibility of controlling the border between the quantum and the classical world by performing nonselective measurements on quantum systems. We consider a quantum harmonic oscillator initially prepared in a Schroedinger cat state and interacting with its environment. We show that the environment induced decoherence transforming the cat state into a statistical mixture can be strongly inhibited by means of appropriate sequences of measurements.

7 pages, 3 figures