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Main Authors: Ramesh, V. G., Rodriguez, S. R. K.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.10791
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author Ramesh, V. G.
Rodriguez, S. R. K.
author_facet Ramesh, V. G.
Rodriguez, S. R. K.
contents The time-integrated intensity transmitted by a laser driven resonator obeys Lévy's arcsine laws [Ramesh \textit{et al.}, Phys. Rev. Lett. \textit{in press} (2024)]. Here we demonstrate the implications of these laws for optical sensing. We consider the standard goal of resonant optical sensors, namely to report a perturbation to their resonance frequency. In this context, we quantify the sensing precision attained using a finite energy budget combined with time or ensemble averaging of the time-integrated intensity. We find that ensemble averaging outperforms time averaging for short measurement times, but the advantage disappears as the measurement time increases. We explain this behavior in terms of weak ergodicity breaking, arising when the time for the time-integrated intensity to explore the entire phase space diverges but the measurement time remains finite. Evidence that the former time diverges is presented in first passage and return time distributions. Our results are relevant to all types of sensors, in optics and beyond, where stochastic time-integrated fields or intensities are measured to detect an event. In particular, choosing the right averaging strategy can improve sensing precision by orders of magnitude with zero energy cost.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2402_10791
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Weak Ergodicity Breaking in Optical Sensing
Ramesh, V. G.
Rodriguez, S. R. K.
Optics
Statistical Mechanics
The time-integrated intensity transmitted by a laser driven resonator obeys Lévy's arcsine laws [Ramesh \textit{et al.}, Phys. Rev. Lett. \textit{in press} (2024)]. Here we demonstrate the implications of these laws for optical sensing. We consider the standard goal of resonant optical sensors, namely to report a perturbation to their resonance frequency. In this context, we quantify the sensing precision attained using a finite energy budget combined with time or ensemble averaging of the time-integrated intensity. We find that ensemble averaging outperforms time averaging for short measurement times, but the advantage disappears as the measurement time increases. We explain this behavior in terms of weak ergodicity breaking, arising when the time for the time-integrated intensity to explore the entire phase space diverges but the measurement time remains finite. Evidence that the former time diverges is presented in first passage and return time distributions. Our results are relevant to all types of sensors, in optics and beyond, where stochastic time-integrated fields or intensities are measured to detect an event. In particular, choosing the right averaging strategy can improve sensing precision by orders of magnitude with zero energy cost.
title Weak Ergodicity Breaking in Optical Sensing
topic Optics
Statistical Mechanics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.10791