Princeton University Gravity Initiative Special Seminar

Abstract: We show that if a massive body is put in a quantum superposition of spatially separated states, the mere presence of a black hole in the vicinity of the body will eventually destroy the coherence of the superposition. This occurs because, in effect, the black hole acquires "which path" information about the superposition due to the radiation of "soft gravitons" through the event horizon. A similar effect occurs for quantum superpositions of electrically charged bodies. We provide estimates of the decoherence time for such quantum superpositions.