Birkhäuser Boston eBooks
The Quantum/Classical Interface: Insights from Clifford’s (Geometric) Algebra
W. E. Baylis
Abstract
Classical relativistic physics in Clifford algebra has a spinorial formulation that is closely related to standard quantum formalism. The algebraic use of spinors and projectors, together with the bilinear relations of spinors to observed currents, gives quantum-mechanical form to many classical results, and the clear geometric content of the algebra makes it an illuminating probe of the quantum/classical interface. This paper extends past efforts to close the conceptual gap between quantum and classical phenomena while highlighting their essential differences. The paravector representation of spacetime in Cl 3 is used in particular to provide insight into spin-1/2 systems and their measurement.