We relate notions of complementarity in three layers of quantum mechanics: (i) von Neumann algebras, (ii) Hilbert spaces, and (iii) orthomodular lattices. Taking a more general categorical perspective of which the above are instances, we consider dagger monoidal kernel categories for (ii), so that (i) become (sub)endohomsets and (iii) become subobject lattices. By developing a ‘point-free’ definition of copyability we link (i) commutative von Neumann subalgebras, (ii) classical structures, and (iii) Boolean subalgebras.
Within the context of an involutive monoidal category the notion of a comparison relation is identified. Instances are equality on sets, inequality on posets, orthogonality on orthomodular lattices, non-empty intersection on powersets, and inner product on vector or Hilbert spaces. Associated with a collection of such (symmetric) comparison relations a dagger category is defined with "tame" relations as morphisms. Examples include familiar categories in the foundations of quantum mechanics, such as sets with partial injections, or with locally bifinite relations, or with formal distributions between them, or Hilbert spaces with bounded (continuous) linear maps. Of one particular example of such a dagger category of tame relations, involving sets and bifinite multirelations between them, the categorical structure is investigated in some detail. It turns out to involve symmetric monoidal dagger structure, with biproducts, and dagger kernels. This category may form an appropriate universe for discrete quantum computations, just like Hilbert spaces form a universe for continuous computation.
The paper is the contribution to quantum toposophy focusing on the abstract orthomodular structures (following Dunn-Moss-Wang terminology). Early quantum toposophical approach to "abstract quantum logic" was proposed based on the topos of functors
[E,Sets] where
E is a so-called orthomodular preorder category – a modification of categorically rewritten orthomodular lattice (taking into account that like any lattice it will be a finite co-complete preorder category). In the paper another kind of categorical semantics of quantum logic is discussed which is based on the modification of the topos construction itself – so called
quantos – which would be evaluated as a non-classical modification of topos with some extra structure allowing to take into consideration the peculiarity of negation in orthomodular quantum logic. The algebra of subobjects of quantos is not the Heyting algebra but an orthomodular lattice. Quantoses might be apprehended as an abstract reflection of Landsman's proposal of "Bohrification", i.e., the mathematical interpretation of Bohr's classical concepts by commutative
C∗-algebras, which in turn are studied in their quantum habitat of noncommutative
C∗-algebras – more fundamental structures than commutative
C∗-algebras. The Bohrification suggests that topos-theoretic approach also should be modified. Since topos by its nature is an intuitionistic construction then Bohrification in abstract case should be transformed in an application of categorical structure based on an orthomodular lattice which is more general construction than Heyting algebra – orthomodular lattices are non-distributive while Heyting algebras are distributive ones. Toposes thus should be studied in their quantum habitat of "orthomodular" categories i.e. of quntoses. Also an interpretation of some well-known systems of orthomodular quantum logic in quantos of functors
[E,QSets] is constructed where
QSets is a quantos (not a topos) of quantum sets. The completeness of those systems in respect to the semantics proposed is proved.