This work presents a heuristic optimization framework that generates specific, quantitative, and testable predictions regarding the quantum-classical transition boundary. Rather than proposing a fundamental theory of quantum gravity or resolving the measurement problem, the framework introduces a phenomenological state-selection criterion based on information-theoretic efficiency under gravitational constraints. Core Predictions & Scope: The Optimization Cliff: Predicts an abrupt collapse of quantum coherence at critical gravitational thresholds ($r_c \approx 1.2\text{ mm}$ for levitated $10^6\text{ amu}$ silica nanoparticles near a $10\text{ g}$ test mass) with a sharp transition width ($\Delta r / r_c < 0.05$), contrasting sharply with the smooth decay predicted by conventional decoherence models. Falsifiability: Provides explicit experimental signatures for terrestrial gradient interferometry and levitated optomechanics, establishing clear go/no-go criteria for empirical refutation. Epistemic Status: Formulated as a productive generative metaphor, the framework maintains strict agnosticism regarding underlying ontology, clearly separating its testable core from speculative extensions. Chronological & Contextual Note: This manuscript reflects the revised version of the framework completed in April 2026 (originally formulated in February 2026). It is deposited on Zenodo as an open-access preprint following an initial deposit on OSF Preprints to ensure permanent digital preservation, DOI indexing via CERN, and open availability for the research community.
This work presents a heuristic optimization framework that generates specific, quantitative, and testable predictions regarding the quantum-classical transition boundary. Rather than proposing a fundamental theory of quantum gravity or resolving the measurement problem, the framework introduces a phenomenological state-selection criterion based on information-theoretic efficiency under gravitational constraints. Core Predictions & Scope: The Optimization Cliff: Predicts an abrupt collapse of quantum coherence at critical gravitational thresholds (rc≈1.2 mm for levitated 106 amu silica nanoparticles near a 10 g test mass) with a sharp transition width (Δr/rc<0.05), contrasting sharply with the smooth decay predicted by conventional decoherence models. Falsifiability: Provides explicit experimental signatures for terrestrial gradient interferometry and levitated optomechanics, establishing clear go/no-go criteria for empirical refutation. Epistemic Status: Formulated as a productive generative metaphor, the framework maintains strict agnosticism regarding underlying ontology, clearly separating its testable core from speculative extensions. Chronological & Contextual Note: This manuscript reflects the revised version of the framework completed in April 2026 (originally formulated in February 2026). It is deposited on Zenodo as an open-access preprint following an initial deposit on OSF Preprints to ensure permanent digital preservation, DOI indexing via CERN, and open availability for the research community.
This pre-print proposes a novel heuristic framework that addresses the quantum-classical boundary through an optimization-based approach. We introduce "resource-dependent state selection"—a mechanism where physical systems dynamically choose between quantum (high-fidelity) and classical (compressed) representations based on information-theoretic efficiency under gravitational constraints. CORE CONTRIBUTION: - A specific, falsifiable prediction: the "optimization cliff"—an abrupt collapse of quantum coherence at critical gravitational thresholds - Quantitative prediction: For 10⁶ amu nanoparticles with 10g test masses, coherence should drop by factor >100 at ~1.2 mm - Clear experimental signature distinguishable from conventional decoherence models FRAMEWORK STATUS: This is a HEURISTIC framework, not a fundamental theory. It generates testable predictions while remaining agnostic about underlying mechanisms. Different sections have different epistemic statuses, explicitly marked throughout. EXPERIMENTAL IMPLICATIONS: The framework provides a clean experimental test requiring minimal modifications to existing levitated nanoparticle setups (e.g., groups of Novotny/ETH or Romero-Isart/Innsbruck). Success would open new research directions; failure would cleanly falsify the approach. KEYWORDS: Quantum-classical transition, Heuristic framework, Optimization cliff, Gravitational decoherence, Experimental prediction, Foundations of physics, Resource optimization NOTE: Developed through conceptual dialogue with AI systems (as acknowledged in the paper), demonstrating modern collaborative research approaches.
TITLE:Gravitational Activation from Accumulated Decoherence: A PhenomenologicalFramework with Testable Predictions We present a phenomenological framework in which classical gravitationalsourcing emerges from irreversibly accumulated decoherence. The centralvariable is the accumulated decoherence parameter D, constructed as amonotone, partition-dependent functional of purity loss underGorini-Kossakowski-Lindblad-Sudarshan (GKLS) open-system dynamics. The framework introduces a critical distinction between gravitationalresponse and gravitational activation. All quantum systems — includingcoherent superpositions — respond universally to existing gravitationalfields, preserving the weak equivalence principle. However, the capacityto source a classical gravitational field is conditioned on accumulateddecoherence: only systems with sufficient D contribute to the gravitationalpotential. This directed structure resolves conceptual tensions betweenquantum coherence and classical geometry without modifying unitary dynamicsor the Schrodinger equation. Gravitational activation is modelled via a Hill-function sigmoid mapping Dto an effective sourcing fraction, controlled by two phenomenologicalparameters: a characteristic decoherence scale D* and a sharpness exponentn. An optional nonlinear feedback mechanism (the Bootstrap Closure) couplesgravitational activation back into the decoherence rate, producing a sharpcrossover — the Quantum Curie Point — at which the system transitionsrapidly from negligible to full gravitational sourcing. We provide numerical estimates of D for five candidate experimental systemsspanning 60 orders of magnitude in mass, from isolated electrons to LIGOtest masses and cosmological horizons. All estimates yield physicallysensible results: coherent laboratory systems show negligible activation,while macroscopic classical objects are deeply in the fully activated regime. Three classes of testable predictions are identified: (1) a mesoscopicpressure-sweep protocol for levitated nanoparticles in which gravitationalsourcing is predicted to exhibit a pressure-dependent suppression below acritical vacuum threshold; (2) constraints on the framework parameters fromBig Bang nucleosynthesis helium abundance, requiring gravitational couplingto be within 20% of Newton’s constant by t ~ 1 second; and (3) potentialmodifications to compact object formation if the activation timescaleexceeds the dynamical collapse timescale. The framework is phenomenologically closed, empirically constrainable,and falsifiable through existing and near-future experimental platformsin mesoscopic optomechanics and matter-wave interferometry. LICENSE:Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) RELATED IDENTIFIERS (optional — add if/when available): - Entropy-Referenced Cosmology: Operational time from coarse-grained entropy production (D’Angelo & D’Angelo, in preparation)- Decoherence-Gravitation Equivalence and the Bootstrapping of Classical Spacetime (D’Angelo & D’Angelo, in preparation) NOTES:This is a preprint deposited for priority timestamp. The work was conductedindependently by the PACES Research Group. Correspondence: jpaces33@gmail.com
This record contains version 2 of the preprint “Identifiability Limits in Experimental Tests of Quantum Collapse.” It supersedes the conceptually broader first version deposited under DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19617199 and substantially revises the framing, formal results and experimental analysis. The paper formulates experimental tests of objective-collapse dynamics as an operational identifiability problem. It shows that finite accessible CPTP process statistics cannot uniformly distinguish fundamental nonunitarity from an unrestricted unitary-environment dilation. It then separates visibility loss, record formation and global measurement access, and derives a nuisance-profiled Fisher-information criterion for determining when complementary measurement channels jointly identify a shared collapse-parameter vector. A four-arm matched-control architecture is proposed that combines baseline stability, coherent reversibility, calibrated decoherence, durable-record formation and at least one independent side-effect channel. The result is a falsifiable experimental decision framework and a boundary on what accessible data can establish; it is not presented as an ontological solution of the quantum measurement problem. A major technical revision is available as version 3 under DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22072199. This record contains version 2 of the preprint “Identifiability Limits in Experimental Tests of Quantum Collapse.” It supersedes the conceptually broader first version deposited under DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19617199 and substantially revises the framing, formal results and experimental analysis. The paper formulates experimental tests of objective-collapse dynamics as an operational identifiability problem. It shows that finite accessible CPTP process statistics cannot uniformly distinguish fundamental nonunitarity from an unrestricted unitary-environment dilation. It then separates visibility loss, record formation and global measurement access, and derives a nuisance-profiled Fisher-information criterion for determining when complementary measurement channels jointly identify a shared collapse-parameter vector. A four-arm matched-control architecture is proposed that combines baseline stability, coherent reversibility, calibrated decoherence, durable-record formation and at least one independent side-effect channel. The result is a falsifiable experimental decision framework and a boundary on what accessible data can establish; it is not presented as an ontological solution of the quantum measurement problem. Files in this record:1. Main preprint PDF.2. Reproducibility package containing the journal-neutral source, editable manuscript, original figures, deterministic calculation and figure-generation code, machine-readable results, citation metadata and SHA-256 checksums. The included calculations are deterministic mathematical and synthetic checks; they are not experimental validation.
Laboratory-based experimental tests remain a central challenge in the study of the quantum-gravity interface. We present a quantitative, experimentally testable prediction for gravitationally induced quantum decoherence of spatial superpositions in levitated optomechanical systems. Starting from two independently well-tested physical elements—the quantum nature of material energy-momentum fluctuations (established in particle physics) and the linear response kernel of classical geometry (derived from the weak-field limit of general relativity and verified by gravitational-wave observations)—and supplementing them with a minimal extension postulate for superposition states, we obtain a rigid scaling law for the gravitational decoherence rate: \Gamma \sim G M^2 d^2 / (\hbar L^3) \cdot \Phi(l_*/L), where M is the mass of the object, d the spatial separation of the superposition branches, L the characteristic linear dimension, and \Phi a dimensionless function encoding the unknown ultraviolet cutoff scale l_* of the effective geometric noise. The structural form \Gamma \propto M^2 d^2 / L^3 contains no free adjustable parameters; the overall amplitude is set by the choice of l_*. Identifying l_* with the Planck length \ell_P = \sqrt{\hbar G / c^3}—the only known scale bridging quantum theory and gravity—yields \Phi \sim \mathcal{O}(1) and a specific numerical target. For current levitated nanoparticle experiments (M \sim 10^{-14}\,\text{kg}, d \sim 10^{-7}\,\text{m}, L \sim 10^{-6}\,\text{m}), this Planck-scale hypothesis predicts a decoherence rate of order 1\,\text{Hz}, placing it within the foreseeable sensitivity window of next-generation optomechanical setups. We discuss the exclusive physical signatures distinguishing this mechanism from environmental decoherence channels and outline explicit falsification conditions, providing experimental groups with a concrete target to probe the quantum-gravity interface in the laboratory.
We develop an effective gravitational framework for the quantum–classical transition based on the dynamical stability of historical information. Building on previous analyses of gravitational temporal decoherence and the emergence of classical time, the present work addresses the subsequent problem of how classical histories become stable, persistent, and objectively accessible. The framework is formulated as a non-relativistic, semiclassical open-system dynamics in which gravity induces structurally constrained dissipative effects of Lindblad type. Within this setting, we introduce a stability functional that operationally characterizes which quantum states can support robust historical records and which are dynamically suppressed. The quantum–classical transition is described as a smooth, scale-dependent crossover controlled by physically meaningful parameters, rather than as a sharp boundary or interpretational postulate. The emergence of a unique classical past is shown to arise from dynamical selection: while multiple quantum histories are formally allowed, only those supported by stable physical records persist under gravitationally induced dissipation. The framework is explicitly effective in scope and does not rely on a microscopic derivation or full relativistic covariance. Instead, it identifies universal structural features that any viable fundamental theory must reproduce in the appropriate semiclassical regime. This work complements earlier studies on the emergence of classical time by providing a dynamical account of historical stability, thereby contributing to a coherent program for understanding the physical origin of classical reality.
Contact: Jonathan.duchesne@hotmail.com FinalTDG: Full Mathematical proposition. AddTDG22: Natural Add-ons TDGStressTest: Stress Test results TDGEX: Experimental Protocol TDGpaper: Abstract Temporal Decoherence Geometry (TDG) is a conservative theoretical framework that systematically explores a possible connection between quantum decoherence, weak-field gravity, and an emergent notion of time, while remaining strictly within a GKSL (Lindblad) open quantum dynamics, i.e. Markovian and completely positive, with no ad hoc collapse mechanism. The central idea of TDG is to take seriously the structure of decoherence of an open quantum system and promote it to an effective geometric object: a decoherence tensor Gamma_{mu nu}, constructed from a Lindblad generator, is introduced as the primary source of a weak-field gravitational potential and an emergent time defined from local decoherence rates. The framework is deliberately minimalist in its assumptions: weak-field regime, standard quantum mechanics (no modification of the Schrödinger equation or the GKSL structure), no exotic measurement postulates. This new “DOI version” collects and organises the following elements: A mathematical core in which Gamma_{mu nu} is derived from a GKSL generator (Lindbladian), a gradient-flow–type evolution drives Gamma_{mu nu} towards a quantity proportional to the usual energy-momentum tensor T_{mu nu}, an emergent time scalar T(x) is defined from the local decoherence rate lambda(x), under explicit integrability conditions, an effective weak-field gravitational potential Phi_TDG is associated with this decoherence structure. The analysis of static, spherically symmetric compact configurations, obtained from a simple “decoherence-energy” functional E[gamma], which: have a regular, non-singular core, exhibit a Yukawa-type tail, reproduce a Newtonian / Schwarzschild-like exterior over a given radial interval, while avoiding central singularities. A phenomenological layer in which TDG induces decoherence-dependent corrections to gravitational redshift, encoded in an effective parameter epsilon_TDG. This parameter is, in principle, falsifiable with state-of-the-art optical clocks, providing a clear experimental handle: TDG is not only a formal construction, but a framework that can be constrained or ruled out by precision redshift measurements. A key feature of this revised version is the inclusion of a set of analytical stress tests explicitly designed to challenge the model within the regime it claims to describe (weak-field, GKSL, Markovian): regular-core compact configurations, extreme parameter limits (diffusion, screening length scales, etc.), dynamical behaviour of the decoherence tensor, analysis of the absence of finite-time collapse in the GKSL setting. These stress tests show that, under the stated assumptions and within the weak-field regime, the TDG framework remains regular, well-posed, and consistent with its own domain of validity. The Zenodo deposit therefore gathers both a main TDG manuscript (model structure + weak-field applications) and a technical stress-test note, enabling readers to assess not only the construction itself, but also its internal robustness and phenomenological viability. This deposit is intended to serve as a stable reference for the current version of TDG: it provides the complete description of the framework together with the technical ingredients needed to evaluate its mathematical consistency, its compatibility with weak-field gravity, and its falsifiability through decoherence-sensitive redshift tests with optical clocks.