Sub-shot-noise quantum metrology with entangled identical particles

The usual notion of separability has to be reconsidered when applied to states describing identical particles. A definition of separability not related to any a priori Hilbert space tensor product structure is needed: this can be given in terms of commuting sub-algebras of observables. Accordingly, the results concerning the use of the quantum Fisher information in quantum metrology are generalized and physically reinterpreted. (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved