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International Journal of Quantum Information

Algebraic formulation of quantum theory, particle identity and entanglement

T. R. Govindarajan

Published Aug 3, 2016• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum theory as formulated in conventional framework using statevectors in Hilbert spaces misses the statistical nature of the underlying quantum physics. Formulation using operators [Formula: see text] algebra and density matrices appropriately captures this feature in addition leading to the correct formulation of particle identity. In this framework, Hilbert space is an emergent concept. Problems related to anomalies and quantum epistemology are discussed.

DOI
10.1142/s0219749916400268

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Quantum theory as formulated in conventional framework using statevectors in Hilbert spaces misses the statistical nature of the underlying quantum physics. Formulation using operators [Formula: see text] algebra and density matrices appropriately captures this feature in addition leading to the correct formulation of particle identity. In this framework, Hilbert space is an emergent concept. Problems related to anomalies and quantum epistemology are discussed.
We present a general approach to quantum entanglement and entropy that is based on algebras of observables and states thereon. In contrast to more standard treatments, Hilbert space is an emergent concept, appearing as a representation space of the observable algebra, once a state is chosen. In this approach, which is based on the Gel'fand-Naimark-Segal construction, the study of subsystems becomes particularly clear. We explicitly show how the problems associated with the partial trace for the study of entanglement of identical particles are readily overcome. In particular, a suitable entanglement measure is proposed that can be applied to systems of particles obeying Fermi, Bose, para-, and even braid-group statistics. The generality of the method is also illustrated by study of the time evolution of subsystems emerging from restriction to subalgebras. Problems related to anomalies and quantum epistemology are also discussed.
The received view in the philosophy of physics is that a quantum theory is given its mathematical formulation in a so-called Hilbert space, with the states of a quantum system given by the elements of this space and observables—measurable quantities of the system—given by so-called operators on this space. But the status of this fundamental postulate becomes threatened when one moves to complex systems, like the quantum fields underlying fundamental particle physics or statistical systems composed of infinite collections of quantum particles. In these more complex cases, one finds many inequivalent Hilbert space representations that appear to be competing quantum theories. In looking for a mathematical structure of the theory to interpret as representing the physical world, one is faced with a choice: either arbitrarily pick one Hilbert space representation (out of the many competing representations) as a Hilbert Space Conservative, or else look for the abstract algebraic structure that all of these competing representations have in common as an Algebraic Imperialist. This dissertation provides an extended argument for the second route.
Quantum mechanics describes the physical state of a microscopic system using vectors in a complex Hilbert space rather than deterministic numerical variables. This mathematical formulation provides a rigorous framework for understanding quantum superposition, probability, and measurement. The Hilbert space structure allows quantum states to be represented as normalized vectors, while inner products define transition probabilities through the Born rule. Linear operators acting on these vectors correspond to measurable physical observables such as position, momentum, and energy. This paper presents a concise mathematical treatment of quantum states in Hilbert space, emphasizing vector representation, superposition, normalization, and projection-based measurement. In addition, the mathematical formulation underlying the concept of quantum immortality is briefly discussed from the perspective of the Many-Worlds Interpretation. The study demonstrates how linear algebra serves as the fundamental language of modern quantum mechanics and provides the theoretical basis for advanced areas including quantum computation, quantum information theory, and quantum communication.
Motivated by models of mixed quantum-classical hybrid theories, we consider the representation of classical observables as Hilbert-space operators based on van Hove's unitary representation of contact transformations. This leads to a reformulation of classical mechanics where the phase space density satisfies the Liouville equation and, more importantly, classical observables are represented by van Hove operators that satisfy a commutation algebra isomorphic to the classical Poisson algebra of functions in phase space. Thus, this Hilbert space approach captures all the essential features of the phase space formulation of classical mechanics in that it reproduces its algebraic structure -- something that is not achieved by other approaches such as the Koopman-von Neumann theory. As an important feature, the definition of appropriate physical states in this formalism imposes certain natural requirements on the phase of the classical wave function, which ensure correct expectation values for the observables. Furthermore, we discuss how to extend the approach to the hybrid van Hove theory of mixed classical-quantum systems and illustrate its application with the example of interacting classical and quantum oscillators. Finally, we focus on the question of how hybrid van Hove theory evades no-go theorems on mixed classical-quantum systems and point to the various assumptions of the no-go theorems that do not apply to our approach. This demonstrates that these no-go theorems are not universally applicable, contrary to their original claims.
A theory of contractions of Lie algebra representations on complex Hilbert spaces is proposed, based on Trotter's theory of approximating sequences of Banach spaces. Its main distinguishing feature is a careful definition of the carrier space of the limit Lie algebra representation. A set of quite general conditions on the contracting representations, satisfied in all known examples, is proven to be sufficient for the existence of such a representation. In order to show how natural the suggested framework is, the general theory is applied to the contraction of [Formula: see text] into the Lie algebra [Formula: see text] of the 3-dimensional Heisenberg group and to the related study of the limit N→∞ of a quantum system of N identical two-level particles.