Elements of Quantum Theory

S. H. Patil

David Robert Bates

Uri Haber‐Schaim

Teiko Heinosaari, Oskari Kerppo

A prepare-and-measure scenario is naturally described by a communication matrix that collects all conditional outcome probabilities of the scenario into a row-stochastic matrix. The set of all possible communication matrices is partially ordered via the possibility to transform one matrix to another by pre- and post-processings. By considering maximal elements in this preorder for a subset of matrices implementable in a given theory, it becomes possible to identify communication matrices of maximum utility, i.e., matrices that are not majorized by any other matrices in the theory. The identity matrix of an appropriate size is the greatest element in classical theories, while the maximal elements in quantum theory have remained unknown. We completely characterize the maximal elements in quantum theory, thereby revealing the essential structure of the set of quantum communication matrices. In particular, we show that the identity matrix is the only maximal element in quantum theory but, as opposed to a classical theory, it is not the greatest element. Quantum theory can hence be seen to be distinct from classical theory by the existence of incompatible communication matrices.

Steven French, Décio Krause

Abstract This chapter presents the theory of quasi-sets, and argues that this offers an appropriate set-theoretic formalism for non-individual quantum objects. The basic idea is that in a quasi-set, there may exist elements for which the traditional concept of identity does not apply — these elements are called the ‘m-atoms’. Thus, a quasi-set may have a cardinal but not an associated ordinal. The other elements can be regarded as standard elements of a set. Hence, the theory encompasses a copy of Zermelo-Frankel set theory with Urelement. A number of alternatives are also presented with a view to possible physical applications, such as allowing the cardinality of a quasi-set to vary in time and thereby accommodating aspects of relativistic quantum theory. The formal framework is also applied to the development of quantum statistics, which can be naturally captured by the theory.