Realistic limits on the nonlocality of an N-partite single-photon superposition

A recent paper revealed that a single quantum symmetrically delocalized over N modes, namely a W state, effectively allows for all-versus-nothing proofs of nonlocality in the limit of large N. Ideally, this finding opens up the possibility of using the robustness of the W states while realizing the nonlocal behavior previously thought to be exclusive to the more complex class of Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger states. We show that in practice, however, the slightest decoherence or inefficiency of the Bell measurements on W states will degrade any violation margin gained by scaling to higher N. The nonstatistical demonstration of nonlocality is thus proved to be impossible in any realistic experiment. © 2011 American Physical Society.