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Sanz ÁS. Young's Experiment with Entangled Bipartite Systems: The Role of Underlying Quantum Velocity Fields. Entropy (Basel) 2023; 25:1077. [PMID: 37510022 PMCID: PMC10378373 DOI: 10.3390/e25071077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
We consider the concept of velocity fields, taken from Bohmian mechanics, to investigate the dynamical effects of entanglement in bipartite realizations of Young's two-slit experiment. In particular, by comparing the behavior exhibited by factorizable two-slit states (cat-type state analogs in the position representation) with the dynamics exhibited by a continuous-variable Bell-type maximally entangled state, we find that, while the velocity fields associated with each particle in the separable scenario are well-defined and act separately on each subspace, in the entangled case there is a strong deformation in the total space that prevents this behavior. Consequently, the trajectories for each subsystem are not constrained any longer to remain confined within the corresponding subspace; rather, they exhibit seemingly wandering behavior across the total space. In this way, within the subspace associated with each particle (that is, when we trace over the other subsystem), not only interference features are washed out, but also the so-called Bohmian non-crossing rule (i.e., particle trajectories are allowed to get across the same point at the same time).
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Affiliation(s)
- Ángel S Sanz
- Department of Optics, Faculty of Physical Sciences, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Pza. Ciencias 1, Ciudad Universitaria, 28040 Madrid, Spain
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2
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Duerr PM, Ehmann A. The physics and metaphysics of Tychistic Bohmian Mechanics. Stud Hist Philos Sci 2021; 90:168-183. [PMID: 34695624 DOI: 10.1016/j.shpsa.2021.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The paper takes up Bell's (1987) "Everett (?) theory" and develops it further. The resulting theory is about the system of all particles in the universe, each located in ordinary, 3-dimensional space. This many-particle system as a whole performs random jumps through 3N-dimensional configuration space - hence "Tychistic Bohmian Mechanics" (TBM). The distribution of its spontaneous localisations in configuration space is given by the Born Rule probability measure for the universal wavefunction. Contra Bell, the theory is argued to satisfy the minimal desiderata for a Bohmian theory within the Primitive Ontology framework (for which we offer a metaphysically more perspicuous formulation than is customary). TBM's formalism is that of ordinary Bohmian Mechanics (BM), without the postulate of continuous particle trajectories and their deterministic dynamics. This "rump formalism" receives, however, a different interpretation. We defend TBM as an empirically adequate and coherent quantum theory. Objections voiced by Bell and Maudlin are rebutted. The "for all practical purposes"-classical, Everettian worlds (i.e. quasi-classical histories) exist sequentially in TBM (rather than simultaneously, as in the Everett interpretation). In a temporally coarse-grained sense, they quasi-persist. By contrast, the individual particles themselves cease to persist.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick M Duerr
- Oriel College, Oriel Square, OX1 4EW, University of Oxford, UK.
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3
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Barrett JA. Situated observation in Bohmian mechanics. Stud Hist Philos Sci 2021; 88:345-357. [PMID: 34303147 DOI: 10.1016/j.shpsa.2021.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2020] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Here we investigate what it might mean for a formulation of quantum mechanics to be empirically adequate. We begin by considering the measurement problem as an empirical problem and distinguishing between stronger and weaker varieties of empirical adequacy. A strongly adequate theory is one that explains the experiences of a physically situated observer. A formulation of quantum mechanics that provides such situated empirical adequacy also provides a particularly compelling response to the measurement problem. As a concrete example we consider how Bohmian mechanics explains the experience of a physically situated observer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey A Barrett
- Logic and Philosophy of Science, School of Social Sciences, UC Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697-5100, USA.
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4
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Idris Z, Zakaria Z, Yee AS, Fitzrol DN, Ghani ARI, Abdullah JM, Wan Hassan WMN, Hassan MH, Manaf AA, Chong Heng RO. Quantum and Electromagnetic Fields in Our Universe and Brain: A New Perspective to Comprehend Brain Function. Brain Sci 2021; 11:brainsci11050558. [PMID: 33925002 PMCID: PMC8146693 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11050558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The concept of wholeness or oneness refers to not only humans, but also all of creation. Similarly, consciousness may not wholly exist inside the human brain. One consciousness could permeate the whole universe as limitless energy; thus, human consciousness can be regarded as limited or partial in character. According to the limited consciousness concept, humans perceive projected waves or wave-vortices as a waveless item. Therefore, human limited consciousness collapses the wave function or energy of particles; accordingly, we are only able to perceive them as particles. With this “limited concept”, the wave-vortex or wave movement comes into review, which also seems to have a limited concept, i.e., the limited projected wave concept. Notably, this wave-vortex seems to embrace photonic light, as well as electricity and anything in between them, which gives a sense of dimension to our brain. These elements of limited projected wave-vortex and limitless energy (consciousness) may coexist inside our brain as electric (directional pilot wave) and quantum (diffused oneness of waves) brainwaves, respectively, with both of them giving rise to one brain field. Abnormality in either the electrical or the quantum field or their fusion may lead to abnormal brain function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zamzuri Idris
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +60-9-767-6299; Fax: +60-9-764-8613
| | - Zaitun Zakaria
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
| | - Ang Song Yee
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
| | - Diana Noma Fitzrol
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
| | - Abdul Rahman Izaini Ghani
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
| | - Jafri Malin Abdullah
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (Z.Z.); (A.S.Y.); (D.N.F.); (A.R.I.G.); (J.M.A.)
- Brain and Behaviour Cluster (BBC), School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
| | - Wan Mohd Nazaruddin Wan Hassan
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
- Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
| | - Mohd Hasyizan Hassan
- Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia; (W.M.N.W.H.); (M.H.H.)
- Department of Anaesthesiology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
| | - Asrulnizam Abdul Manaf
- Collaborative Microelectronic Design Excellence Center (CEDEC), Universiti Sains Malaysia, Bayan Lepas 11900, Malaysia;
| | - Raymond Ooi Chong Heng
- Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia;
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Villani M, Albareda G, Destefani C, Cartoixà X, Oriols X. Scattering in Terms of Bohmian Conditional Wave Functions for Scenarios with Non-Commuting Energy and Momentum Operators. Entropy (Basel) 2021; 23:e23040408. [PMID: 33808161 PMCID: PMC8065387 DOI: 10.3390/e23040408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Revised: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Without access to the full quantum state, modeling quantum transport in mesoscopic systems requires dealing with a limited number of degrees of freedom. In this work, we analyze the possibility of modeling the perturbation induced by non-simulated degrees of freedom on the simulated ones as a transition between single-particle pure states. First, we show that Bohmian conditional wave functions (BCWFs) allow for a rigorous discussion of the dynamics of electrons inside open quantum systems in terms of single-particle time-dependent pure states, either under Markovian or non-Markovian conditions. Second, we discuss the practical application of the method for modeling light–matter interaction phenomena in a resonant tunneling device, where a single photon interacts with a single electron. Third, we emphasize the importance of interpreting such a scattering mechanism as a transition between initial and final single-particle BCWF with well-defined central energies (rather than with well-defined central momenta).
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Villani
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain; (M.V.); (C.D.); (X.C.)
| | - Guillermo Albareda
- Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter, Luruper Chaussee 149, 22761 Hamburg, Germany;
- Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, Universitat de Barcelona, Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes 585, 08007 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Carlos Destefani
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain; (M.V.); (C.D.); (X.C.)
| | - Xavier Cartoixà
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain; (M.V.); (C.D.); (X.C.)
| | - Xavier Oriols
- Department of Electronic Engineering, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain; (M.V.); (C.D.); (X.C.)
- Correspondence:
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6
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Walleczek J, Grössing G, Pylkkänen P, Hiley B. Emergent Quantum Mechanics: David Bohm Centennial Perspectives. Entropy (Basel) 2019; 21:E113. [PMID: 33266829 DOI: 10.3390/e21020113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2019] [Accepted: 01/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Emergent quantum mechanics (EmQM) explores the possibility of an ontology for quantum mechanics. The resurgence of interest in realist approaches to quantum mechanics challenges the standard textbook view, which represents an operationalist approach. The possibility of an ontological, i.e., realist, quantum mechanics was first introduced with the original de Broglie–Bohm theory, which has also been developed in another context as Bohmian mechanics. This Editorial introduces a Special Issue featuring contributions which were invited as part of the David Bohm Centennial symposium of the EmQM conference series (www.emqm17.org). Questions directing the EmQM research agenda are: Is reality intrinsically random or fundamentally interconnected? Is the universe local or nonlocal? Might a radically new conception of reality include a form of quantum causality or quantum ontology? What is the role of the experimenter agent in ontological quantum mechanics? The Special Issue also includes research examining ontological propositions that are not based on the Bohm-type nonlocality. These include, for example, local, yet time-symmetric, ontologies, such as quantum models based upon retrocausality. This Editorial provides topical overviews of thirty-one contributions which are organized into seven categories to provide orientation.
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7
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Ghadimi M, Hall MJW, Wiseman HM. Nonlocality in Bell's Theorem, in Bohm's Theory, and in Many Interacting Worlds Theorising. Entropy (Basel) 2018; 20:E567. [PMID: 33265655 DOI: 10.3390/e20080567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2018] [Revised: 07/24/2018] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
"Locality" is a fraught word, even within the restricted context of Bell's theorem. As one of us has argued elsewhere, that is partly because Bell himself used the word with different meanings at different stages in his career. The original, weaker, meaning for locality was in his 1964 theorem: that the choice of setting by one party could never affect the outcome of a measurement performed by a distant second party. The epitome of a quantum theory violating this weak notion of locality (and hence exhibiting a strong form of nonlocality) is Bohmian mechanics. Recently, a new approach to quantum mechanics, inspired by Bohmian mechanics, has been proposed: Many Interacting Worlds. While it is conceptually clear how the interaction between worlds can enable this strong nonlocality, technical problems in the theory have thus far prevented a proof by simulation. Here we report significant progress in tackling one of the most basic difficulties that needs to be overcome: correctly modelling wavefunctions with nodes.
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Norsen T. On the Explanation of Born-Rule Statistics in the de Broglie-Bohm Pilot-Wave Theory. Entropy (Basel) 2018; 20:E422. [PMID: 33265512 DOI: 10.3390/e20060422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2018] [Revised: 05/24/2018] [Accepted: 05/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The de Broglie-Bohm pilot-wave theory promises not only a realistic description of the microscopic world (in particular, a description in which observers and observation play no fundamental role) but also the ability to derive and explain aspects of the quantum formalism that are, instead, (awkwardly and problematically) postulated in orthodox versions of quantum theory. Chief among these are the various “measurement axioms” and in particular the Born rule expressing the probability distribution of measurement outcomes. Compared to other candidate non-orthodox quantum theories, the pilot-wave theory suffers from something of an embarrassment of riches in regard to explaining the Born rule statistics, in the sense that there exist, in the literature, not just one but two rather compelling proposed explanations. This paper is an attempt to critically review and clarify these two competing arguments. We summarize both arguments and also survey some objections that have been given against them. In the end, we suggest that there is somewhat less conflict between the two approaches than existing polemics might suggest, and that indeed elements from both arguments may be combined to provide a unified and fully-compelling explanation, from the postulated dynamical first principles, of the Born rule.
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9
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Lazarovici D, Oldofredi A, Esfeld M. Observables and Unobservables in Quantum Mechanics: How the No-Hidden-Variables Theorems Support the Bohmian Particle Ontology. Entropy (Basel) 2018; 20:E381. [PMID: 33265471 DOI: 10.3390/e20050381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2018] [Revised: 05/05/2018] [Accepted: 05/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The paper argues that far from challenging—or even refuting—Bohm’s quantum theory, the no-hidden-variables theorems in fact support the Bohmian ontology for quantum mechanics. The reason is that (i) all measurements come down to position measurements; and (ii) Bohm’s theory provides a clear and coherent explanation of the measurement outcome statistics based on an ontology of particle positions, a law for their evolution and a probability measure linked with that law. What the no-hidden-variables theorems teach us is that (i) one cannot infer the properties that the physical systems possess from observables; and that (ii) measurements, being an interaction like other interactions, change the state of the measured system.
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Gisin N. Why Bohmian Mechanics? One- and Two-Time Position Measurements, Bell Inequalities, Philosophy, and Physics. Entropy (Basel) 2018; 20:E105. [PMID: 33265196 DOI: 10.3390/e20020105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2017] [Revised: 01/21/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2018] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
In Bohmian mechanics, particles follow continuous trajectories, so two-time position correlations have been well defined. However, Bohmian mechanics predicts the violation of Bell inequalities. Motivated by this fact, we investigate position measurements in Bohmian mechanics by coupling the particles to macroscopic pointers. This explains the violation of Bell inequalities despite two-time position correlations. We relate this fact to so-called surrealistic trajectories that, in our model, correspond to slowly moving pointers. Next, we emphasize that Bohmian mechanics, which does not distinguish between microscopic and macroscopic systems, implies that the quantum weirdness of quantum physics also shows up at the macro-scale. Finally, we discuss the fact that Bohmian mechanics is attractive to philosophers but not so much to physicists and argue that the Bohmian community is responsible for the latter.
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Abstract
Cancer is a term used to define a collective set of rapidly evolving cells with immortalized replication, altered epimetabolomes and patterns of longevity. Identifying a common signaling cascade to target all cancers has been a major obstacle in medicine. A quantum dynamic framework has been established to explain mutation theory, biological energy landscapes, cell communication patterns and the cancer interactome under the influence of quantum chaos. Quantum tunneling in mutagenesis, vacuum energy field dynamics, and cytoskeletal networks in tumor morphogenesis have revealed the applicability for description of cancer dynamics, which is discussed with a brief account of endogenous hallucinogens, bioelectromagnetism and water fluctuations. A holistic model of mathematical oncology has been provided to identify key signaling pathways required for the phenotypic reprogramming of cancer through an epigenetic landscape. The paper will also serve as a mathematical guide to understand the cancer interactome by interlinking theoretical and experimental oncology. A multi-dimensional model of quantum evolution by adaptive selection has been established for cancer biology.
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12
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Mahler DH, Rozema L, Fisher K, Vermeyden L, Resch KJ, Wiseman HM, Steinberg A. Experimental nonlocal and surreal Bohmian trajectories. Sci Adv 2016; 2:e1501466. [PMID: 26989784 PMCID: PMC4788483 DOI: 10.1126/science.1501466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2015] [Accepted: 12/05/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Weak measurement allows one to empirically determine a set of average trajectories for an ensemble of quantum particles. However, when two particles are entangled, the trajectories of the first particle can depend nonlocally on the position of the second particle. Moreover, the theory describing these trajectories, called Bohmian mechanics, predicts trajectories that were at first deemed "surreal" when the second particle is used to probe the position of the first particle. We entangle two photons and determine a set of Bohmian trajectories for one of them using weak measurements and postselection. We show that the trajectories seem surreal only if one ignores their manifest nonlocality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan H. Mahler
- Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control, Department of Physics, University of Toronto, 60 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A7, Canada
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, 180 Dundas Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Z8, Canada
| | - Lee Rozema
- Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control, Department of Physics, University of Toronto, 60 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A7, Canada
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, 180 Dundas Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Z8, Canada
| | - Kent Fisher
- Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Lydia Vermeyden
- Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Kevin J. Resch
- Institute for Quantum Computing and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Howard M. Wiseman
- Centre for Quantum Dynamics, Griffith University, Brisbane, Queensland 4111, Australia
| | - Aephraim Steinberg
- Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control, Department of Physics, University of Toronto, 60 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A7, Canada
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, 180 Dundas Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1Z8, Canada
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13
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Sartenaer O. Emergent evolutionism, determinism and unpredictability. Stud Hist Philos Sci 2015; 51:62-68. [PMID: 26227232 DOI: 10.1016/j.shpsa.2015.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2014] [Revised: 03/27/2015] [Accepted: 03/27/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The fact that there exist in nature thoroughly deterministic systems whose future behavior cannot be predicted, no matter how advanced or fined-tune our cognitive and technical abilities turn out to be, has been well established over the last decades or so, essentially in the light of two different theoretical frameworks, namely chaos theory and (some deterministic interpretation of) quantum mechanics. The prime objective of this paper is to show that there actually exists an alternative strategy to ground the divorce between determinism and predictability, a way that is older than-and conceptually independent from-chaos theory and quantum mechanics, and which has not received much attention in the recent philosophical literature about determinism. This forgotten strategy-embedded in the doctrine called "emergent evolutionism"-is nonetheless far from being a mere historical curiosity that should only draw the attention of philosophers out of their concern for comprehensiveness. It has been indeed recently revived in the works of respected scientists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Sartenaer
- Department of Philosophy, Columbia University, 708 Philosophy Hall, 1150 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027, USA.
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14
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Dürr D, Lienert M. On the description of subsystems in relativistic hypersurface Bohmian mechanics. Proc Math Phys Eng Sci 2014; 470:20140181. [PMID: 25197244 DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2014.0181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2014] [Accepted: 06/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
A candidate for a realistic relativistic quantum theory is the hypersurface Bohm-Dirac model. Its formulation uses a foliation of space-time into space-like hypersurfaces. In order to apply the theory and to make contact with the usual quantum formalism, one needs a framework for the description of subsystems. The presence of spin together with the foliation renders the subsystem description more complicated than in the non-relativistic case with spin. In this paper, we provide such a framework in terms of an appropriate conditional density matrix and an effective wave function as well as clarify their relation, thereby generalizing previous subsystem descriptions in the non-relativistic case.
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Affiliation(s)
- Detlef Dürr
- Mathematisches Institut, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität , Theresienstrasse 39, 80333 München, Germany
| | - Matthias Lienert
- Mathematisches Institut, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität , Theresienstrasse 39, 80333 München, Germany
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15
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Dürr D, Goldstein S, Norsen T, Struyve W, Zanghì N. Can Bohmian mechanics be made relativistic? Proc Math Phys Eng Sci 2014; 470:20130699. [PMID: 24511259 PMCID: PMC3896068 DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2013.0699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2013] [Accepted: 11/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
In relativistic space-time, Bohmian theories can be formulated by introducing a privileged foliation of space-time. The introduction of such a foliation-as extra absolute space-time structure-would seem to imply a clear violation of Lorentz invariance, and thus a conflict with fundamental relativity. Here, we consider the possibility that, instead of positing it as extra structure, the required foliation could be covariantly determined by the wave function. We argue that this allows for the formulation of Bohmian theories that seem to qualify as fundamentally Lorentz invariant. We conclude with some discussion of whether or not they might also qualify as fundamentally relativistic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Detlef Dürr
- Mathematisches Institut, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Theresienstraße. 39, 80333 München, Germany
| | - Sheldon Goldstein
- Department of Mathematics, Rutgers University, Hill Center, 110 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019, USA
- Department of Physics, Rutgers University, Hill Center, 110 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019, USA
- Department of Philosophy, Rutgers University, Hill Center, 110 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019, USA
| | | | - Ward Struyve
- Department of Mathematics, Rutgers University, Hill Center, 110 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019, USA
- Department of Philosophy, Rutgers University, Hill Center, 110 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019, USA
| | - Nino Zanghì
- Dipartimento di Fisica dell’Università di Genova and INFN sezione di Genova, Via Dodecaneso 33, 16146 Genova, Italy
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