Abstract Despite the astonishing successes of quantum mechanics, due to some fundamental problems such as the measurement problem and quantum arrival time problem, the predictions of the theory are in some cases not quite clear and unique. Especially, there are various predictions for the joint spatiotemporal distribution of particle detection events on a screen, which are derived from different formulations and interpretations of the quantum theory. Although the differences are typically small, we show that these predictions can be experimentally distinguished by a proposed unconventional double-slit configuration, which is realizable using present-day single-atom interferometry. This experiment would enrich our understanding of the foundations of quantum mechanics.
Abstract Despite the astonishing successes of quantum mechanics, due to some fundamental problems such as the measurement problem and quantum arrival time problem, the predictions of the theory are in some cases not quite clear and unique. Especially, there are various predictions for the joint spatiotemporal distribution of particle detection events on a screen, which are derived from different formulations and interpretations of the quantum theory. Although the differences are typically small, we show that these predictions can be experimentally distinguished by a proposed unconventional double-slit configuration, which is realizable using present-day single-atom interferometry. This experiment would enrich our understanding of the foundations of quantum mechanics.
The significance of proposals that can predict different results for standard and Bohmian quantum mechanics have been the subject of many discussions over the years. Here, we suggest a particular experiment (a two double-slit experiment) and a special detection process, that we call selective detection, to distinguish between the two theories. Using our suggested experiment, it is shown that the two theories predict different observable results at the individual level for a geometrically symmetric arrangement. However, their predictions are the same at the ensemble level. On the other hand, we have shown that at the statistical level, if we use our selective detection, then either the predictions of the two theories differ or where standard quantum mechanics is silent or vague, Bohmian quantum mechanics makes explicit predictions.
In this paper, we analyze the statistics of detection data in a general double-double-slit experiment. The two particles are detected at random times which are not equal in general and because we do not have any constraint on the distances of left and right screens from their slits and the ratio they can be detected in completely different timescales. As the detection of the first particle leads to collapse of the wave function, there is no a straightforward and agreed-upon method to study this problem in the orthodox formalism which lacks a clear prediction of these random events and therefore the quantum state afterward. This is not the case in the Bohmian framework which we implement in this paper, and we can predict the system up to the end of experiment. The main result is the joint distribution of detection data including the arrival time and position of the particles on left and right screens. As one of the main consequences, we see that although the joint spatial distribution can be affected by a change to the relative location of screens, the marginals on each side remain intact, compatible with signal locality. At the end, we see how this result is very sensitive to quantum equilibrium conditions.
The double-slit experiment has stood for a century as the paradigmatic demonstration of quantum superposition: the standard interpretation holds that a particle passes through both slits simultaneously, existing in a superposition of two spatially separated states. This paper proposes a physically distinct alternative: the particle's matter wave — a real physical wave propagating through space in accordance with de Broglie's relation λ = h/p — passes through both slits, while the particle itself (matter) remains in an undetermined state until a constructive interference maximum is formed at the detection screen. The particle does not simultaneously occupy two locations; the wave does. This distinction eliminates the need for superposition as an ontological commitment while fully reproducing the observed interference pattern. We further show that the disappearance of the interference pattern upon which-path measurement is explained without invoking wavefunction collapse: the measurement interaction redirects the matter wave to a single-slit geometry, eliminating the two-wave interference condition. Three experimentally testable predictions distinguish this framework from the standard interpretation: (1) weak-measurement trajectory reconstruction should reveal single particle paths inconsistent with simultaneous two-slit passage; (2) diffraction fringe spacing should depend on the mass density of the slit material, because denser slit edges generate a steeper refractive-index gradient for the matter wave; (3) the fringe pattern should exhibit a density-dependent phase shift measurable with current matter-wave interferometry technology. This reinterpretation requires no new mathematical formalism — the Schrödinger equation and Born's rule are retained — but replaces the ontological claim of simultaneous multi-location existence with the physically consistent picture of matter-wave propagation through an undetermined-state particle.
The causal quantum mechanics (i.e. Bohmian or de Broglie-Bohm or Bohm-de Broglie quantum mechanics) has made possible to calculate the trajectories of electrons in a typical double-slit experiment [C. Philippidis et al., Il Nuovo Cimento, 52 B, 15-28 (1979)]. The trajectories do not correspond to an uniform movement but to an accelerated one. The acceleration is caused by the quantum potential. From the quantum theoretical point of view, there is a probability for the electron to emit photons, with a certain emission power, during its movement from the slits to the screen. We find a quantum general formula for the emission power of photons, valid independently of the interpretation. Then, according to the Copenhagen interpretation, this formula gives a strictly zero value for the emission power because the electron moves as a free particle after it leaves the slit and before reach the screen. Then, there is no emission of photons. In the case of the causal interpretation, the emission power results, for a concrete real experiment, in a very tiny but not a zero value, driven by the square of the quantum potential gradient. We give an idea of the type of spectrum that could be measured. A brief idea of a possible experimental arrangement in order to detect this effect, is given.
The Bohm-de Broglie quantum mechanics has made possible to calculate the trajectories of electrons in a typical double-slit experiment[C. Philippidis et al., Il Nuovo Cimento, 52 B, 15-28 (1979)]. The trajectories do not correspond to an uniform movement but to an accelerated one. The acceleration is caused by the quantum potential. From the quantum theoretical point of view, the accelerated electrons should, with a certain probabil-ity, emit photons during its movement from the slits to the screen. According to the Copenhagen interpretation we found that this quantity is strictly zero because the electron moves as a free particle along its path after it leaves the slit and before reach the screen. Then, there is no emission of photons. On the other hand, by using the Bohm-de Broglie (BdB) approach we calculate the emission power, giving a general formula and which results, for a concrete real experiment, in a very tiny but not a vanishing value. We give an idea of the type of spectrum that could be measured. Therefore we have shown that the theoretical predictions of the usual quan-tum mechanics and that of Bohm-de Broglie’s interpretation are different. An experiment could determine the correct prediction.
The thesis offers an innovative analysis of quantum mechanics. Firstly, it clearly expounds the characteristics of quantum mechanics in measurement and other aspects, and proposes seven criteria for judging scientific nature. Then, it points out that there are some key problems with the orthodox assumptions of quantum mechanics, such as unclear physical mechanisms, lack of rigorous logic, difficulty in falsification, and incomplete main considerations.Regarding the double-slit interference experiment, the thesis conducts a comprehensive derivation and demonstration, proposing a unique interpretation. The traditional view holds that the interference is caused by the wave nature of electrons, while this thesis suggests that it is the periodic fluctuating Coulomb force field in the double-slit slits. A large number of electrons interact with it, undergo regular deflection to form a probability distribution, and then superimpose to produce interference fringes. This interpretation challenges the traditional cognition of the wave nature of microscopic particles in quantum mechanics, prompting us to re-think the basic concepts and experimental interpretations of quantum mechanics from the new perspective of the Coulomb force field, providing new ideas and directions for the study of quantum mechanics.