dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaConsistent Resolution of Some Relativistic Quantum Paradoxes
| Authors | Robert B. Griffiths |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | quant-ph/0207015 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0207015 |
| DOI | 10.1103/PhysRevA.66.062101 |
Abstract
A relativistic version of the (consistent or decoherent) histories approach to quantum theory is developed on the basis of earlier work by Hartle, and used to discuss relativistic forms of the paradoxes of spherical wave packet collapse, Bohm's formulation of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen, and Hardy's paradox. It is argued that wave function collapse is not needed for introducing probabilities into relativistic quantum mechanics, and in any case should never be thought of as a physical process. Alternative approaches to stochastic time dependence can be used to construct a physical picture of the measurement process that is less misleading than collapse models. In particular, one can employ a coarse-grained but fully quantum mechanical description in which particles move along trajectories, with behavior under Lorentz transformations the same as in classical relativistic physics, and detectors are triggered by particles reaching them along such trajectories. States entangled between spacelike separate regions are also legitimate quantum descriptions, and can be consistently handled by the formalism presented here. The paradoxes in question arise because of using modes of reasoning which, while correct for classical physics, are inconsistent with the mathematical structure of quantum theory, and are resolved (or tamed) by using a proper quantum analysis. In particular, there is no need to invoke, nor any evidence for, mysterious long-range superluminal influences, and thus no incompatibility, at least from this source, between relativity theory and quantum mechanics.
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"abstract": "A relativistic version of the (consistent or decoherent) histories approach\nto quantum theory is developed on the basis of earlier work by Hartle, and used\nto discuss relativistic forms of the paradoxes of spherical wave packet\ncollapse, Bohm\u0027s formulation of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen, and Hardy\u0027s paradox.\nIt is argued that wave function collapse is not needed for introducing\nprobabilities into relativistic quantum mechanics, and in any case should never\nbe thought of as a physical process. Alternative approaches to stochastic time\ndependence can be used to construct a physical picture of the measurement\nprocess that is less misleading than collapse models. In particular, one can\nemploy a coarse-grained but fully quantum mechanical description in which\nparticles move along trajectories, with behavior under Lorentz transformations\nthe same as in classical relativistic physics, and detectors are triggered by\nparticles reaching them along such trajectories. States entangled between\nspacelike separate regions are also legitimate quantum descriptions, and can be\nconsistently handled by the formalism presented here. The paradoxes in question\narise because of using modes of reasoning which, while correct for classical\nphysics, are inconsistent with the mathematical structure of quantum theory,\nand are resolved (or tamed) by using a proper quantum analysis. In particular,\nthere is no need to invoke, nor any evidence for, mysterious long-range\nsuperluminal influences, and thus no incompatibility, at least from this\nsource, between relativity theory and quantum mechanics.",
"arxiv_id": "quant-ph/0207015",
"authors": [
"Robert B. Griffiths"
],
"categories": [
"quant-ph",
"gr-qc",
"hep-th"
],
"doi": "10.1103/PhysRevA.66.062101",
"title": "Consistent Resolution of Some Relativistic Quantum Paradoxes",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0207015"
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