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arXiv:quant-ph/9605002quant-ph

Quantum Mechanics of Measurement

N. J. Cerf, C. Adami

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Abstract

An analysis of quantum measurement is presented that relies on an information-theoretic description of quantum entanglement. In a consistent quantum information theory of entanglement, entropies (uncertainties) conditional on measurement outcomes can be negative, implying that measurement can be described via unitary, entropy-conserving, interactions, while still producing randomness in a measurement device. In such a framework, quantum measurement is not accompanied by a wave-function collapse, or a quantum jump. The theory is applied to the measurement of incompatible variables, giving rise to a stronger entropic uncertainty relation than heretofore known. It is also applied to standard quantum measurement situations such as the Stern-Gerlach and double-slit experiments to illustrate how randomness, inherent in the conventional quantum probabilities, arises in a unitary framework. Finally, the present view clarifies the relationship between classical and quantum concepts.

arXiv comments
18 pages RevTex incl. 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. A. Revised abstract and introduction. Added discussion on separability and entropic uncertainty relations
Journal reference
DOI
Subjects
quant-phQuantum Physics

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Linked by 1 identifiable commenter in 12 comments across 12 threads, from Nov 2011 to Sep 2019. Found in 1 HN submission from Aug 2016 to Aug 2016. Open submission discussions.

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Discussed in comments12 threads

    • Another author saying essentially the same thing: https://arxiv.org/abs/1812.06451 I actually believe that this idea has been rediscovered in it essence at least half a dozen times, going back as early as (at least) the late 90s: https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/9605002 I think…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • > Do you have an alternative description to work around this "problem"? I like this approach: https://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/9605002 > the measurement on C/A is strictly before the rotation on B so there is not even the shadow of a problem Yes, obviously. That is not what I'm…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • Ironically, I am just in the process of preparing a talk on the history of the atomic theory. Even as late as 1905 when Einstein published his work on brownian motion it was still highly controversial whether atoms were "really real" or just a mathematical contrivance. Some…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • You are talking about the math, and I'm talking about what happens physically. As an analogy, this is like talking about whether F=G * m1 * m2 / r^2 is an accurate mathematical model of gravity in the weak limit (it is) vs talking about whether earth is actually pulling you down…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • > You still need to put in Born's rule by hand somewhere I'm not sure what you mean by "putting Born's rule in by hand". We're talking about interpretations here. Born's rule is just an empirical fact. Do you mean that I need to explain why the probabilities are the square of…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • Here's the credible citation: http://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/9605002 (It's ironic, BTW, that you should complain that my citation is "not even a journal paper" when yours isn't either.) And BTW2, Aaronson's blog post doesn't contradict my position. The Bell inequality violations…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • > inflating small fragments HN comments don't lend themselves well to long-form writing. But in this case it wasn't really necessary to go past that one small fragment to see that Motl had not in fact paid attention to the details because he's attacking a straw man. > Your…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • My paper is based on this one: http://arxiv.org/pdf/quant-ph/9605002v2.pdf I don't know if that exact paper was ever published, but an earlier version was formally published here: C. H. Adami and N. J. Cerf, “Information Theory of Quantum Entanglement and Measurement,” Physica D…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • http://arxiv.org/abs/quant-ph/9605002 This doesn't discuss the arrow-of-time directly, but it's a pretty straightforward corollary.

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • That's an excellent piece, but he leaves out an important detail: not only can complex numbers generate negative probabilities, they can also generate negative entropies. This observation can be used to answer the riddle of how unitary transformations can produce quantum…

      lisperView on HNParent context

    • Why do you think those are mutually exclusive? "the number of real parameters needed to specify a quantum state is exponential in the number of systems" is just a rewording of "the quantum state function is an exponentially complicated object." But when you combine that…

      lisperView on HNParent context

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