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Journal of Physics Conference Series

Eigenforms, Discrete Processes and Quantum Processes

Louis Hirsch Kauffman

Published May 10, 2012• 9 citations
Publisher

Abstract

This essay is a discussion of the concept of eigenform, due to Heinz von Foerster, and its relationship with discrete physics and quantum mechanics. We interpret the square root of minus one as a simple oscillatory process - a clock, and as an eigenform. By taking a generalization of this identification of i as a clock and eigenform, we show how quantum mechanics emerges from discrete physics.

DOI
10.1088/1742-6596/361/1/012034

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This essay is a discussion of the concept of eigenform, due to Heinz von Foerster, and its relationship with discrete physics and quantum mechanics. We interpret the square root of minus one as a simple oscillatory process - a clock, and as an eigenform. By taking a generalization of this identification of i as a clock and eigenform, we show how quantum mechanics emerges from discrete physics.
Introduction In a lecture in April 1970 Dirac talked about the early days of quantum mechanics (Dirac, 1972). Among other topics he discussed noncommutative algebra, and added The question arises whether the noncommutation is really the main new idea of quantum mechanics. Previously I always thought it was but recently I have begun to doubt it and to think that maybe from the physical point of view, the noncommutation is not the only important idea and there is perhaps some deeper idea, some deeper change in our ordinary concepts which is brought about by quantum mechanics. He then expanded on this subject and concluded So if one asks what is the main feature of quantum mechanics, I feel inclined now to say that it is not noncommutative algebra. It is the existence of probability amplitudes which underlie all atomic processes. Now a probability amplitude is related to experiment but only partially. The square of its modulus is something that we can observe. That is the probability which the experimental people get. But besides that there is a phase, a number of modulus unity which can modify without affecting the square of the modulus. And this phase is all important because it is the source of all interference phenomena but its physical significance is obscure. […]
Using the Euler--Maruyama technique, we show that a class of Wiener processes exists that are obtained by computing an arbitrary positive power of them. This can be accomplished with a proper set of definitions that makes meaningful the realization at discrete times of these processes and make them computable. Then, we are able to show that quantum mechanics is not directly a stochastic process characterizing Brownian motion but rather its square root. Schr\odinger equation is immediately derived without further assumptions as the Fokker--Planck equation for this process. This generalizes without difficulty to a Clifford algebra that makes immediate the introduction of spin and a generalization to the Dirac equation. A relevant conclusion is that the introduction of spin is essential to recover the Brownian motion from its square root.
After the development of a self-consistent quantum formalism nearly a century ago there began a quest for how to interpret the theoretical constructs of the formalism. In fact, the pursuit of new interpretations of quantum mechanics persists to this day. Most of these endeavors assume the validity of standard quantum formalism and proceed to ponder the ontic nature of wave functions, operators, and the Schödinger equation. The present essay takes a different approach, more epistemological than ontological. I endeavor to give a heuristic account of how empirical principles lead us to a quantum mechanical description of the world. An outcome of this approach is the suggestion that the notion of discrete quanta leads to the wave nature and statistical behavior of matter rather than the other way around. Finally, the hope is to offer some solace to those older of us who still worry about such things and also to provide the neophyte student of quantum mechanics with physical insight into the mathematically abstract and often baffling aspects of the theory.
After the development of a self-consistent quantum formalism nearly a century ago, there ensued a quest to understand the often counterintuitive predictions of the theory. These endeavors invariably begin with the assumption of the "truth" of the mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics and then proceed to investigate the theory's implications for the physical world. One of the outcomes has been endless discussions of the quantum measurement problem, wave/particle duality, the non-locality of entangled quantum states, Schroedinger's cat, and other philosophical conundrums. In this essay, I take the point of view that quantum mechanics is a mathematical model, a human invention, and rather than pondering what the theory implies about our world, I consider the transposed question: what is it about our world that leads us to a quantum mechanical model of it? One consequence is the realization that discrete quanta, the quantum of action in particular, leads to the wave nature and statistical behavior of matter rather than the other way around.
An introduction to some basic ideas of the author's "quantum cybernetics" is given, which depicts waves and "particles" as mutually dependent system components, thus defining "organizationally closed systems" characterized by a fundamental circular causality. According to this, a new derivation of quantum theory's most fundamental equation, the Schroedinger equation, is presented. Finally, it is shown that quantum systems can be described by what Heinz von Foerster has called "nontrivial machines", whereas the corresponding classical counterparts turn out to behave as "trivial machines".