Quantum Theory: It’s Unreal

Ali Reza Mirzaee

One of the foundational challenges in both Quantum Field Theory and the philosophy of physics lies in the traditional binary classification of entities as either real or unreal. The classical view posits that material entities are real, while mental constructs or theoretical entities are unreal. However, quantum phenomena such as virtual particles challenge this simplistic dichotomy. These unobservable entities, by influencing measurable phenomena, raise profound questions about the nature and modes of existence. To address this, we propose a four-level ontological hierarchy that spans from the quantum vacuum and the virtual level to the quantum level and phenomenal reality, providing a coherent continuum from potentiality to actualization. This framework not only clarifies the interpretation of quantum theory but also offers a unified perspective linking the unobservable with the observable. In QFT, virtual particles play a crucial role in mediating forces and in correcting the measurable properties of real particles. They arise within the mathematical structure of Feynman diagrams and, despite being unobservable, produce real, measurable effects such as the Lamb shift and the Casimir effect. Philosophically, this raises deep ontological questions: if unobservable entities affect measurable phenomena, can they truly be dismissed as unreal? Conversely, if they are real, what mode of existence do they possess? The traditional dichotomy of real versus unreal is thus insufficient for interpreting the ontological implications of quantum processes. To overcome these limitations, we propose a four-level ontological hierarchy.

Bunge, Mario

Christoph Adami, Lambert Giner, Jeff S. Lundeen +1 more

Two of the most common interpretations of quantum measurement disagree about the fate of quantum amplitudes after measurement, yet this disagreement has not previously led to experimentally distinguishable predictions. In the standard collapse picture, commonly linked to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, measurements eliminate unrealized amplitudes without leaving a memory. In contrast, in the unitary theory, the measurement device registers one of the possible outcomes while remaining part of an entangled state that continues to harbor the unrealized amplitudes. This persistence arises naturally under unitary evolution, since a measurement device that is part of an entangled system cannot serve as a faithful probe of the joint quantum state. Using single-photon measurements of a tunable quantum state, we experimentally show that these two theories make different predictions when three or more consecutive measurements are performed on the same quantum system. Analysis of the joint density matrix of the three measurements reveals coherence among them and supports the unitary theory of quantum measurement. When decoherence is explicitly introduced, the joint density matrix of the quantum system of interest and the apparatus becomes consistent with what a collapse theory would predict. This work clarifies the dynamics of consecutive quantum measurements and offers new insights into the interpretation of quantum measurements.

David Hodgson

Da‐jun Zhang

Einstein′s Relativity Theory reveals the laws of macro-material world,and Planck and Heisenberg′s Quantum Mechanics reveals those of micro-material world.On the basis of thorough research on these theories,and by breaking through the threshold of wave-particle duality with philosophical thinking,a new material category—supra-micro-material world has been found.Using the Yin-Yang theory in traditional Chinese culture,the author classifies the three material categories into the Yin material world and Yang material world.The Yang material world is a four-dimensional timespace,and is made up of real particles whose speed is slower than the light velocity.The Yin material world is a multi-dimensional timespace (more than four dimensions) and is made up of unreal particles,which possess the wave characteristics only.The unreal particles fill the Yin material world but take no room,and their initial speed is faster than the light velocity.Now,only a part of the Yang material world is known to us,and the whole Yin material world remains unknown.So,in future,the object of scientific study will gradually shift to the Yin material world.

Robert B. Griffiths