This work introduces the State Locality Theory (SLT), a phenomenological framework describing the quantum–classical transition through a single continuous parameter of locality. The theory proposes that quantum behavior arises from low-locality states, while classical behavior emerges as locality increases, with decoherence interpreted as a natural consequence of this transition. SLT provides a unified explanation for interference visibility, gravitational amplification of locality, and the suppression of nonlocal correlations in macroscopic systems. The framework is formulated without modifying quantum mechanics, instead offering a phenomenological layer that clarifies how classicality emerges from quantum foundations. The theory outlines testable predictions, discusses implications for measurement, and proposes a structured approach for extending SLT toward a full dynamical formulation.
This work introduces the State Locality Theory (SLT), a phenomenological framework describing the quantum–classical transition through a single continuous parameter of locality. The theory proposes that quantum behavior arises from low-locality states, while classical behavior emerges as locality increases, with decoherence interpreted as a natural consequence of this transition. SLT provides a unified explanation for interference visibility, gravitational amplification of locality, and the suppression of nonlocal correlations in macroscopic systems. The framework is formulated without modifying quantum mechanics, instead offering a phenomenological layer that clarifies how classicality emerges from quantum foundations. The theory outlines testable predictions, discusses implications for measurement, and proposes a structured approach for extending SLT toward a full dynamical formulation.
State Locality Theory 2 (SLT‑2) is a multi‑layer theoretical framework that explores locality, mass, and manifestation as structural consequences of differences in a homogeneous field. The project consists of three interconnected parts: Foundations — the ontological and geometric core (axioms, primary difference, waves, nodes, hierarchy of levels n); Dynamics — a compatible dynamical layer based on a universal nonlinear field, providing stability of nodes, localization dynamics, and structural interpretation of decoherence; Phenomenology — numerical and conceptual alignment with observed particle masses, QFT spectral structure, and experimentally testable predictions such as gravitationally enhanced decoherence. SLT‑2 does not modify the equations of quantum mechanics or relativity and does not claim to be a fundamental physical theory. It is a structured exploration of the consequences of a single ontological hypothesis and a platform for developing, refining, and testing structural models of manifestation. This OSF project hosts the evolving documents, derivations, and extensions of SLT‑2.
Part III completes the three-layer architecture of State Locality Theory 2 (SLT-2) by providing a phenomenological framework that translates the structural ontology and effective dynamics of SLT-2 into concrete, experimentally testable predictions. No new free parameters are introduced beyond the localization constant α inherited from SLT-1. The document formulates an operational protocol for applying SLT-2 to real systems, constructs a regime map in mass–path-separation parameter space, derives quantitative visibility predictions for molecular interferometry, nanoparticle interferometry, and superconducting systems, and specifies falsifiability criteria. SLT-2 predicts gravitationally enhanced decoherence in the 10⁵–10⁶ amu range (ΔV ∼ 0.5–5%), suppressed sensitivity in superconducting phases, a pressure-independent visibility plateau in ultrahigh vacuum, and full coherence of neutrinos over astronomical baselines. The structural mass hierarchy is discussed honestly as a scale of node complexity, not a mass formula.
This work develops a phenomenological model of residual decoherence in superconducting transmon qubits within the framework of State Locality Theory (SLT‑2). The model treats a qubit as a stable localized field configuration and introduces a frequency‑dependent localization rate that increases at lower transition energies. Using phenomenologically calibrated parameters, the model predicts a fundamental coherence‑time ceiling in the millisecond range and yields a falsifiable experimental signature: after subtracting all known noise mechanisms, the remaining decoherence rate should scale linearly with the inverse qubit frequency. Comparison with recent state‑of‑the‑art devices suggests that the SLT‑2 contribution may already constitute a significant fraction of the residual decoherence budget in low‑frequency qubits. The work also outlines an experimentally accessible protocol for testing this prediction using tunable‑frequency transmons. Additional SLT‑2 materials, extensions, and working notes are available in the associated OSF project: 10.17605/OSF.IO/CMVJ5.
This article surveys a selection of key conceptual and interpretational developments in quantum mechanics, tracing the theory from its foundational postulates to contemporary discussions of measurement, nonlocality, and the emergence of classicality. Beginning with the structure of Hilbert space and the postulates governing state evolution and measurement, the epistemic stance of the Copenhagen interpretation and its modern reformulations are examined. The Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen argument, Bell's theorem, and Hardy's paradox are then discussed as probes of locality and realism, alongside the deterministic but explicitly nonlocal de Broglie-Bohm theory. The measurement problem and the implications of contextuality are analyzed in relation to objective collapse models, which introduce new physical dynamics to account for definite outcomes. Finally, the role of decoherence in the suppression of interference and the emergence of classical behavior is explored, together with the interpretational frameworks of many-worlds and consistent histories. This material aims to provide a coherent introductory overview of how several of the most prominent interpretations address the central concern of what quantum mechanics tells us about the nature of physical reality.
This article surveys a selection of key conceptual and interpretational developments in quantum mechanics, tracing the theory from its foundational postulates to contemporary discussions of measurement, nonlocality, and the emergence of classicality. Beginning with the structure of Hilbert space and the postulates governing state evolution and measurement, the epistemic stance of the Copenhagen interpretation and its modern reformulations are examined. The Einstein–Podolsky–Rosen argument, Bell’s theorem, and Hardy’s paradox are then discussed as probes of locality and realism, alongside the deterministic but explicitly nonlocal de Broglie–Bohm theory. The measurement problem and the implications of contextuality are analyzed in relation to objective collapse models, which introduce new physical dynamics to account for definite outcomes. Finally, the role of decoherence in the suppression of interference and the emergence of classical behavior is explored, together with the interpretational frameworks of many-worlds and consistent histories. This material aims to provide a coherent introductory overview of how several of the most prominent interpretations address the central concern of what quantum mechanics tells us about the nature of physical reality.
This paper develops a dual-domain framework for quantum foundations grounded in a structural distinction between a nonlocal, atemporal coherence domain (denoted −0) and a local, temporal decoherence domain (denoted +1). Quantum states are interpreted as existing within −0, while classical outcomes emerge when these states transition irreversibly into +1 through decoherence and measurement. The framework is not a modification of quantum mechanics but a reinterpretation of its ontological domain. The framework provides a unified ontological account of: quantum entanglement and nonlocal correlations; the absence of superluminal signalling; the emergence of classicality through decoherence; the mass dependence of decoherence rates; and the persistent incompatibility between quantum field theory and general relativity. Within this model, entanglement corresponds to the persistence of a single −0 state across multiple +1 localisations. Measurement is interpreted not as a collapse occurring within spacetime, but as a boundary transition from coherence to localisation. The paper further argues that gravity should not be interpreted as a quantum field propagating within spacetime, but rather as the geometric structure of the coherence–decoherence boundary itself. This perspective offers a principled explanation for the persistent incompatibility between quantum field theory and general relativity — a tension that may arise not from technical deficiency but from a category error: attempting to describe boundary geometry as though it were content within one of the domains it separates.