Physical Number-phase Intelligent and Minimum-uncertainty States of Light

Abstract

The recently introduced Hermitian phase operator allows a phase-state representation of the single-mode light field. We find the requirement that a light field is in a physical state, that is, has finite energy moments, imposes strict and simple continuity conditions on the phase-amplitude distribution. We exploit these conditions to examine the physical intelligent and minimum-uncertainty states associated with the number-phase uncertainty relations, including those involving the Hermitian phase operator and its sine and cosine forms. The single number-state is found to be the only physical exact intelligent state and also the only physical exact minimum-uncertainty state for all the uncertainty relations considered. We construct states which are both physical states and approximately intelligent states. Under certain conditions coherent states, ideal squeezed states and the number-phase intelligent states associated with the Susskind-Glogower cosine and sine operators are found to be both physical states and approximately number-phase intelligent states for the phase operators considered here.