dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaA General Argument Against the Universal Validity of the Superposition Principle
| Authors | Angelo Bassi, GianCarlo Ghirardi |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | quant-ph/0009020 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0009020 |
| DOI | 10.1016/S0375-9601(00)00612-5 |
| Journal | Phys.Lett. A275 (2000) 373 |
Abstract
We reconsider a well known problem of quantum theory, i.e. the so called measurement (or macro-objectification) problem, and we rederive the fact that it gives rise to serious problems of interpretation. The novelty of our approach derives from the fact that the relevant conclusion is obtained in a completely general way, in particular, without resorting to any of the assumptions of ideality which are usually done for the measurement process. The generality and unescapability of our assumptions (we take into account possible malfunctionings of the apparatus, its unavoidable entanglement with the environmment, its high but not absolute reliability, its fundamentally uncontrollable features) allow to draw the conclusion that the very possibility of performing measurements on a microsystem combined with the assumed general validity of the linear nature of quantum evolution leads to a fundamental contradiction.
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"abstract": "We reconsider a well known problem of quantum theory, i.e. the so called\nmeasurement (or macro-objectification) problem, and we rederive the fact that\nit gives rise to serious problems of interpretation. The novelty of our\napproach derives from the fact that the relevant conclusion is obtained in a\ncompletely general way, in particular, without resorting to any of the\nassumptions of ideality which are usually done for the measurement process. The\ngenerality and unescapability of our assumptions (we take into account possible\nmalfunctionings of the apparatus, its unavoidable entanglement with the\nenvironmment, its high but not absolute reliability, its fundamentally\nuncontrollable features) allow to draw the conclusion that the very possibility\nof performing measurements on a microsystem combined with the assumed general\nvalidity of the linear nature of quantum evolution leads to a fundamental\ncontradiction.",
"arxiv_id": "quant-ph/0009020",
"authors": [
"Angelo Bassi",
"GianCarlo Ghirardi"
],
"categories": [
"quant-ph"
],
"doi": "10.1016/S0375-9601(00)00612-5",
"journal_ref": "Phys.Lett. A275 (2000) 373",
"title": "A General Argument Against the Universal Validity of the Superposition Principle",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/0009020"
},
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