Abstract
We say that the quantum observables "position" and "momentum" are "complementary" because the precise knowledge of the position (momentum) implies that all possible outcomes of measuring the momentum (position) are equally probable. Bohr illustrated complementarity with "wave-like" and "particle-like" attributes of a quantum mechanical object.1 Since then, complementarity is often superficially identified with "wave-particle duality of matter." Over the years two-slit interference experiment has been emphasized as a good example of the enforcement of complementarity. In two-slit experiment, the common understanding is that the position-momentum uncertainty relation makes it impossible to determine which slit the photon (or electron) passes through without at the same time disturbing the object enough to destroy the interference pattern. In 1982, Scully et al suggested a way around this position-momentum uncertainty obstacle and proposed a quantum eraser to obtain which-path or particle-like information without scattering or otherwise introducing large uncontrolled phase factors to disturb the interference.2 Since 1982, quantum has been claimed in several experiments; however, the original proposed ideas have not been fully demonstrated.
© 1999 Optical Society of America
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