Is the Wavefunction Real?

Martin Ringbauer

Jean Louis Van Belle

This paper is the 5th in a series of explorations to see if a simple physical interpretation of the quantum-mechanical wavefunction could possibly make sense. It challenges two of the usual objections to such interpretation: 1. The superposition of wavefunctions is done in the complex space and, hence, the assumption of a real-valued envelope for the wavefunction is, therefore, not acceptable. 2. The wavefunction for spin-1/2 particles cannot represent any real object because of its 720-degree symmetry in space. Real objects have the same spatial symmetry as space itself, which is 360 degrees. Hence, physical interpretations of the wavefunction are nonsensical. The heuristic arguments in this paper will, hopefully, convince the reader these objections are subject to interpretation themselves. If anything, the ideas presented in this paper might contribute to a better didactic model for teaching quantum mechanics.

C. Bamber, Jeff S. Lundeen, Aabid Patel +2 more

The photon wavefunction is measured by a direct method that does not require computation reconstruction. A reading on our measurement apparatus is directly proportional to the real and imaginary parts of the wavefunction.

Dipankar Home, M. A. B. Whitaker

Shan Gao

Maria Hoffmann-Ostenhof, Thomas Hoffmann-Ostenhof, Barry Simon A

In an arbitrarily small neighbourhood of any zero of a real-valued bounded continuous atomic wavefunction, the wavefunction has both signs.