The so-called ’interaction-free’ measurement is a very interesting quantum effect that allows discovering the presence of an opaque object in a given spatial domain, with the probability that the object absorbs a photon being, in principle, as low as desired. This probability is bounded from below only by a value of the order of 1/ωτ, where ω is the frequency of light and τ is the measurement time. This corresponds to the average absorbed energy of the order of \hbar/τ. The ’interaction-free’ technique can also be used to measure the coordinate of an object but only under the condition that the object is prepared in a special ’discretized’ quantum state. Such is, for instance, the state of a ponderomotive meter of electromagnetic energy, which, in principle, enables the interaction-free’ measurement of the energy contained in an electromagnetic cavity. Estimations show that with modern experimental equipment and with the help of ’interaction-free’ measurement, single atoms can be registered inside optical cavities.

PACS: 03.65.Ta, 03.67.−a, 42.50.Tv (all) DOI: 10.1070/PU2004v047n07ABEH001821 URL: https://ufn.ru/en/articles/2004/7/d/ 000225027900004 Citation: Vyatchanin S P, Khalili F Ya "'Interaction-free' measurement: possibilities and limitations" Phys. Usp. 47 705–716 (2004) BibTexBibNote ® (generic)BibNote ® (RIS)MedlineRefWorks Оригинал: Вятчанин С П, Халили Ф Я «Измерение "без взаимодействия": возможности и ограничения» УФН 174 765–777 (2004); DOI: 10.3367/UFNr.0174.200407e.0765