title: Experimental demonstration of the bosonic commutation relation via superpositions of quantum operations on thermal light fields.
abstract: We present the experimental realization of a scheme, based on single-photon interference, for implementing superpositions of distinct quantum operations. Its application to a thermal light field (a well-categorized classical entity) illustrates quantum superposition from a new standpoint and provides a direct and quantitative verification of the bosonic commutation relation between creation and annihilation operators. By shifting the focus towards operator superpositions, this result opens interesting alternative perspectives for manipulating quantum states.
authors.affiliation: Istituto Nazionale di Ottica Applicata (INOA-CNR), L.go E. Fermi 6, 50125 Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zavatta
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Parigi
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bellini