The selection equation (replicator equation) has been independently discovered not only in various fields of biology (population genetics, ecology, prebiotic evolution, and sociobiology), but also in laser theory, where it accounts for the emergence of coherent light. Selection theory (replicator dynamics) is an ensemble theory, i. e., it describes the entire system rather than individual events, neglecting details in favor of a statistical view. However, the underlying processes at the individual level are well known in biology. For light quanta, this is not the case, because quantum theory says nothing about individual events. In the Copenhagen interpretation even the existence of causality on "quantum level" is denied. A large number of recent publications, however, makes this interpretation seem questionable.In the present paper, therefore, an attempt is made to describe the basic interactions between light and matter, as far as they are relevant for the emergence of coherent light in the laser (a photon pair interaction mediated by matter is postulated), and to apply replicator dynamics on this basis. Starting point are papers of A. Einstein about the interaction of light and matter as well as the photoelectric effect. Both theories are slightly modified. Furthermore, the double-slit experiment is investigated and finally the emergence of coherent light by density-dependent selection of photons of different phase in a laser-like model. The relationship between “mean fitness”, information content of the photon ensemble and the amplitude of the light is also analyzed.
The selection equation (replicator equation) has been independently discovered not only in various fields of biology (population genetics, ecology, prebiotic evolution, and sociobiology), but also in laser theory, where it accounts for the emergence of coherent light. Selection theory (replicator dynamics) is an ensemble theory, i. e., it describes the entire system rather than individual events, neglecting details in favor of a statistical view. However, the underlying processes at the individual level are well known in biology. For light quanta, this is not the case, because quantum theory says nothing about individual events. In the Copenhagen interpretation even the existence of causality on "quantum level" is denied. A large number of recent publications, however, makes this interpretation seem questionable.In the present paper, therefore, an attempt is made to describe the basic interactions between light and matter, as far as they are relevant for the emergence of coherent light in the laser (a photon pair interaction mediated by matter is postulated), and to apply replicator dynamics on this basis. Starting point are papers of A. Einstein about the interaction of light and matter as well as the photoelectric effect. Both theories are slightly modified. Furthermore, the double-slit experiment is investigated and finally the emergence of coherent light by density-dependent selection of photons of different phase in a laser-like model. The relationship between “mean fitness”, information content of the photon ensemble and the amplitude of the light is also analyzed.
Einstein's 1905 paper,in which he proposed the notion of light quanta,is reviewed.The difference between the interacting processes of light with matter and the free propagating processes of light is emphasized. All relevant experiments including photoelectric effect and Compton scattering just show that light manifests as one and other photons in its interacting with matter,but does not so in its free propagating. According to the quantum theory of electromagnetic field, the propagating light is not in the eigenstate of photon number generally,and could not be described by the language of photons.
Recently, the methods of quantum theory, especially quantum information, started to be widely applied outside of physics: in cognitive, social sciences, economics, finance, decision making and biology. We propose a quantum-like model: the “information laser”. The basic assumption is the discrete structure of state spaces related to the quantization of information. The information field acts in the form of indistinguishable quanta of “social energy” analog to photons. The massive flow acts as a pump. In this framework an information selection process by agents under constant pressure of massive repeated information leads to collective “resonance” effects in analogy with laser cavity and stimulated emission. In order to make operational parallels between physical lasers and the information laser we identify the essential features of laser operation. An application to the analysis of recent disruptive social events (color revolutions) is discussed.
Light can interfere like a wave in a multi-path experiment, but it also has particle properties when interacting with matter. In a closer look, the interference pattern is created by many individual detections ("clicks"), which do not all occur simultaneously. An established assumption is therefore that a single light particle is capable of interfering with itself by superimposing all possibilities to get from the source to the detector. This is in stark contrast to our experience with macroscopic objects, which always "decide" in favour of only one of the alternative paths.In 2010, Jin et al. (Ref. 15) described an event-based model which allowed the authors to show that an interference pattern consisting of clicks can arise in a multi-path experiment even if photons, like macroscopic objects, only follow one path. To do this, photons must be able to transmit the information about their travelling duration to the detector and the detector must have a basic memory. A threshold function uses the message of several light quanta to decide whether a single detection is initiated, which is not the evidence for a single photon. In this "proof of principle", the authors do not claim that the detector function is a realistic one.In the present paper, this detector is replaced by a material consisting of ionizable molecules whose interaction with light takes place according to a modified version of Einstein's radiation laws. Based on this, a photon pair interaction mediated by matter takes place, which in a multi-path experiment generates an interference pattern of clicks at the detector, even if an arbitrary amount of time elapses between the individual detections. In the present model an interference pattern with minima that have less than half the intensity of the maxima is the result of a peculiar behaviour of the detector: In this case, the entirety of its electrons must be described as a unit (a “field”) with many equidistant energy levels. The results of a simulation are presented which enable the model to be tested in experiments.
Within the framework of the ‘Pairwise Interference Model’ of light–matter interaction, it is postulated that light particles follow definite trajectories, and thus, for example, in the double-slit experiment, a particle can pass through only one of the two slits. On this premise, the interference of two photons is examined in greater detail. It is hypothesized that the interference of a photon pair requires the involvement of matter and, initially, that both molecular excitations and photons oscillate at the same frequency and that the continuity of the oscillation is not disrupted by absorption and emission. The molecular excitations in the light source are supposed to oscillate synchronously. Both photons arrive at the same point on the detector but may travel along different paths and therefore arrive at different times. Under these conditions, their phase difference, φ(2) – φ(1), is always zero. Consequently, no interference pattern can form on the detector screen and therefore the assumptions made are incorrect. Alternatively, one may assume that only the photon oscillates, whereas the excitation stores the phase, φ, possessed by the photon at the instant of absorption. In this case, φ(2) – φ(1) corresponds to the difference in travel times modulo the oscillation period, and an interference pattern can form. However, this assumption is problematic for some reasons: the nature of the matter-based memory remains unclear; according to the special theory of relativity, no time elapses for a particle travelling at the speed of light, meaning that it cannot oscillate; and the assumption contradicts Bohr’s correspondence principle. In a classical wave, the phase information propagates away from the source at the wave velocity without changing. This leads to the alternative possibility that the excitations oscillate, whereas the photons do not. Instead, the photons transport information about the phase of the excitation at the instant of emission. As can be shown, in this case, φ(2) – φ(1) likewise corresponds to the difference in travel times modulo the oscillation period. However, this hypothesis contradicts the de Broglie postulate, according to which all particles exhibit wave properties, and the relation ε = hν must therefore be interpreted differently. It also raises the question of how the dimensions of a laser, specifically the mirror separation, can influence the wavelength of the amplified light if a photon has no wavelength. Using replicator dynamics and the ‘Pairwise Interference Model’ of light–matter interaction, a simulation demonstrates that, in a simplified laser model, assuming that photons do not oscillate whereas excitations do, self-organisation gives rise to a phase pattern in the sequence of photons within the emitted light beam that corresponds to the pattern obtained by discretising a classical wave. Thus, coherent light can exhibit wave properties even if photons themselves do not. Finally, the possibility of how incoherent light acquires wave properties is briefly discussed.
Light can interfere like a wave in a multi-path experiment, but it also has particle properties when interacting with matter. In a closer look, the interference pattern is created by many individual detections ("clicks"), which do not all occur simultaneously. An established assumption is therefore that a single light particle is capable of interfering with itself by superimposing all possibilities to get from the source to the detector. This is in stark contrast to our experience with macroscopic objects, which always "decide" in favour of only one of the alternative paths.In 2010, Jin et al. (Ref. 15) described an event-based model which allowed the authors to show that an interference pattern consisting of clicks can arise in a multi-path experiment even if photons, like macroscopic objects, only follow one path. To do this, photons must be able to transmit the information about their travelling duration to the detector and the detector must have a basic memory. A threshold function uses the message of several light quanta to decide whether a single detection is initiated, which is not the evidence for a single photon. In this "proof of principle", the authors do not claim that the detector function is a realistic one.In the present paper, this detector is replaced by a material consisting of ionizable molecules whose interaction with light takes place according to a modified version of Einstein's radiation laws. Based on this, a photon pair interaction mediated by matter takes place, which in a multi-path experiment generates an interference pattern of clicks at the detector, even if an arbitrary amount of time elapses between the individual detections. In the present model an interference pattern with minima that have less than half the intensity of the maxima is the result of a peculiar behaviour of the detector: In this case, the entirety of its electrons must be described as a unit (a “field”) with many equidistant energy levels. The results of a simulation are presented which enable the model to be tested in experiments.
Recently, the methods of quantum theory, especially quantum information, started to be widely applied outside of physics: in cognitive, social sciences, economics, finance, decision making and biology. We propose a quantum-like model: the “information laser”. The basic assumption is the discrete structure of state spaces related to the quantization of information. The information field acts in the form of indistinguishable quanta of “social energy” analogue to photons. The massive flow of information acts as a laser pump. In this framework, an information selection process by agents under constant pressure of massive repeated information leads to collective “resonance” effects in analogy with laser cavity and stimulated emission. In order to make operational parallels between physical lasers and the information laser we identify the essential features of laser operation. An application to the analysis of recent disruptive social events (colour revolutions) is discussed. Social analogues to the laser are also considered through the model of Echo Chambers induced by the Internet and Adam Smith’s invisible hand.