Weak value amplification in a shot-noise limited interferometer

We study the weak-value amplification (WVA) in a phase measurement with an optical interferometer in which shot noise limits the sensitivity. We compute the signal and the shot noise including the full-order interaction terms of the WVA, and show that the shot-noise contribution to a phase shift in a pointer variable is always larger than the final variance of the pointer variable. This yields difference in estimating noise level up to a factor of 1.5. To clarify an advantage for practical uses of the WVA, we discuss signal-to-noise ratio and its optimization in the presence of the shot noise.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Cardassian Expansion: Constraints from Compact Radio Source Angular Size versus Redshift Data

The ``Cardassian Expansion Scenario'' was recently proposed by Freese and Lewis (2002) as an alternative to a cosmological constant in explaining the current accelerating universe. In this paper we investigate observational constraints on this scenario from recent measurements of the angular size of high-$z$ compact radio sources compiled by Gurvits et al. (1999). We show that the allowed intervals for $n$ and $z_{eq}$, the two parameters of the Cardassian model, are heavily dependent on the value of the mean projected linear size $l$. However, the best fit to the current angular size data prefers the conventional flat $\Lambda$CDM model to this Cardassian expansion proposal, though the latter is cosmologically credible and compatible with the $\Theta - z$ diagram for some values of $l$.Comment: 2 figures, 1 table, uses aaste

All-order evaluation of weak measurements: --- The cases of an operator A{\bf A} which satisfies the property A2=1{\bf A}^{2}=1 ---

Some exact formulae of the expectation values and probability densities in a weak measurement for an operator ${\bf A}$ which satisfies the property ${\bf A}^{2}=1$ are derived. These formulae include all-order effects of the unitary evolution due to the von-Neumann interaction. These are valid not only in the weak measurement regime but also in the strong measurement regime and tell us the connection between these two regime. Using these formulae, arguments of the optimization of the signal amplification and the signal to noise ratio are developed in two typical experimental setups.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures (v1); Fig.3 and some typos are corrected (v2); Comments and references are added and some typos are corrected (v3

Constraints on Cardassian Expansion from Distant type Ia Supernovae

The distant type Ia supernovae data compiled by Perlmutter et al. (1999) are used to analyze the Cardassian expansion scenario, which was recently proposed by Freese and Lewis (2002) as an alternative to a cosmological constant (or more generally a dark energy component) in explaining the currently accelerating universe. We show that the allowed intervals for $n$ and $z_{eq}$, the two parameters of the Cardassian model, will give rise to a universe with a very low matter density, which can hardly be reconciled with the current value derived from the measurements of the cosmic microwave background anisotropy and galaxy clusters (cluster baryon fraction). As a result, this Cardassian expansion proposal does not seem to survive the magnitude-redshift test for the present type Ia supernovae data, unless the universe contains primarily baryonic matter.Comment: 3 figures, 1 table, uses aaste

Guided Lock of a Suspended Optical Cavity Enhanced by a Higher Order Extrapolation

Lock acquisition of a suspended optical cavity can be a highly stochastic process and is therefore nontrivial. Guided lock is a method to make lock acquisition less stochastic by decelerating the motion of the cavity length based on an extrapolation of the motion from an instantaneous velocity measurement. We propose an improved scheme which is less susceptible to seismic disturbances by incorporating the acceleration as a higher order correction in the extrapolation. We implemented the new scheme in a 300-m suspended Fabry-Perot cavity and improved the success rate of lock acquisition by a factor of 30