Entropic uncertainty principle for mixed states

Abstract

The entropic uncertainty principle in the form proven by Maassen and Uffink yields a fundamental inequality that is prominently used in many places all over the field of quantum information theory. In this paper, we provide a family of versatile generalizations of this relation. Our proof methods build on a deep connection between entropic uncertainties and interpolation inequalities for the doubly stochastic map that links probability distributions in two measurement bases. In contrast to the original relation, our generalization also incorporates the von Neumann entropy of the underlying quantum state. These results can be directly used to bound the extractable randomness of a source-independent quantum random number generator in the presence of fully quantum attacks, to certify entanglement between trusted parties, or to bound the entanglement of a system with an untrusted environment. Published by the American Physical Society 2024