Harnessing the center-of-mass excitations in quantum metrology

Abstract: In quantum metrology, one typically creates correlations among atoms or photons to enhance measurement precision. Here, we show how one can use other excitations to perform quantum-enhanced measurements on the example of center-of-mass excitations of a spin-orbit coupled Bose-Einstein condensate and a Coulomb crystal. We also present a method to simulate a homodyne detection of center-of-mass excitations in these systems, which is required for optimal estimation.