Simultaneous optical phase and loss estimation revisited: measurement and probe incompatibility

Abstract Quantum multiparameter metrology is hindered by incompatibility issues, such as finding a single probe state (probe incompatibility) and a single measurement (measurement incompatibility) optimal for all parameters. The simultaneous estimation of phase shift and loss in a single optical mode is a paradigmatic multiparameter metrological problem in which such tradeoffs are present. We consider two settings: single-mode or two-mode probes (with a reference lossless mode), and for each setting we consider either Gaussian states or arbitrary quantum states of light restricted only by a maximal number of photons allowed. We find numerically that, as the number of photons increases, there are quantum states of light for which probe incompatibility disappears both in the single- and two-mode scenarios. On the other hand, for Gaussian states, probe incompatibility is present in the single-mode case and may be removed only in the two-mode setting thanks to the entanglement with the reference mode. Finally, we provide strong arguments that the fundamental incompatibility aspect of the model is measurement incompatibility, which persists for all the scenarios considered, and unlike probe-incompatibility cannot be overcome even in the large photon number limit.