Conversion of Thermal Equilibrium States into Superpositions of Macroscopically Distinct States

Understand

A simple procedure for obtaining superpositions of macroscopically distinct states is proposed and analyzed.

• We find that a thermal equilibrium state can be converted into such a state when a single global measurement of a macroscopic observable, such as the total magnetization, is made.
• This method is valid for systems with macroscopic degrees of freedom and finite (including zero) temperature.
• The superposition state is obtained with a high (low) probability when the measurement is made with a high (low) resolution.