Mainstream quantum mechanics and quantum field theory have achieved unmatchedmathematical success, yet they leave numerous black boxes in the physicalpicture: what is a field, where does mass come from, why does electric charge havea sign, whether the wave function is a physical reality or a probabilistic tool, whereparticle nature comes from, and why gravity is both so weak and unquantizable.In this paper, within the framework of Marker Ontology (ZTD theory), and basedon the three core concepts of spatial primitives, nearest-neighbor propagation, andsurvivor selection, we provide a unified, natural, and intuitive ontological picturefor matter, energy, mass, momentum, charge, fields, light, gravity, spin, vacuum,quantum fluctuations, antimatter, and other fundamental physical concepts.This paper does not modify any existing mathematical prediction. However,it identifies a decisive experimental direction: the cascade interference experiment.The experiment predicts that in the strong-measurement limit the visibility of thesecond-level interference pattern does not vanish strictly, but retains a small nonzeroresidual. This differs from the predictions of the Copenhagen collapse interpretationand the many-worlds interpretation. It is currently the most important testableconsequence of the ZTD picture.Keywords: Marker Ontology; spatial primitives; constrained refreshment clusters;ontological picture; wave-particle duality; charge origin; mass–energy conversion;gravitational nature; cascade interference experiment
Mainstream quantum mechanics and quantum field theory have achieved unmatchedmathematical success, yet they leave numerous black boxes in the physicalpicture: what is a field, where does mass come from, why does electric charge havea sign, whether the wave function is a physical reality or a probabilistic tool, whereparticle nature comes from, and why gravity is both so weak and unquantizable.In this paper, within the framework of Marker Ontology (ZTD theory), and basedon the three core concepts of spatial primitives, nearest-neighbor propagation, andsurvivor selection, we provide a unified, natural, and intuitive ontological picturefor matter, energy, mass, momentum, charge, fields, light, gravity, spin, vacuum,quantum fluctuations, antimatter, and other fundamental physical concepts.This paper does not modify any existing mathematical prediction. However,it identifies a decisive experimental direction: the cascade interference experiment.The experiment predicts that in the strong-measurement limit the visibility of thesecond-level interference pattern does not vanish strictly, but retains a small nonzeroresidual. This differs from the predictions of the Copenhagen collapse interpretationand the many-worlds interpretation. It is currently the most important testableconsequence of the ZTD picture.Keywords: Marker Ontology; spatial primitives; constrained refreshment clusters;ontological picture; wave-particle duality; charge origin; mass–energy conversion;gravitational nature; cascade interference experiment
(This revised edition removes the cascade interference experiment and adds the delayed-choice, quantum eraser, and filtering picture.) Mainstream quantum mechanics and quantum field theory have achieved unmatchedmathematical success, yet they leave numerous black boxes in the physicalpicture: what a field is, where mass comes from, why electric charge has a sign,whether the wave function is a physical reality or a probabilistic tool, where particlenature comes from, and why gravity is both so weak and unquantizable. Inthis paper, within the framework of Marker Ontology (ZTD theory), and basedon the three core concepts of spatial primitives, nearest-neighbor propagation, andsurvivor selection, we provide a unified, natural, and intuitive ontological picturefor matter, energy, mass, momentum, charge, fields, light, gravity, spin, vacuum,quantum fluctuations, antimatter, and other fundamental physical concepts.This paper does not modify any existing mathematical prediction and does notclaim to provide a new quantitative result. It offers a conceptual framework in whichthe delayed-choice experiment and the quantum eraser are reinterpreted as differentforms of physical filtering, rather than as evidence for retrocausality, consciousnessinducedcollapse, or branching worlds. In particular, it emphasizes that the totaldetection rate is not merely a technical efficiency factor, but is itself part of thefiltering structure that determines which photon histories enter the final statistics.
Within the framework of ZTD (Marker Ontology), this paper systematically accomplishes two tasks: the ontological quantification of physical quantities, and the marker interpretation of group velocity. All derivations proceed from two axioms, layer by layer, without logical gaps. Part One: Foundations. From the axiom of objective existence and the axiom of finitude, we derive the existence of spatial primitives and temporal primitives. We define the deviation field and establish the coupled oscillator equation. Part Two: Hierarchical Quantification of Physical Quantities. We define and quantify, layer by layer, energy, force, inertial coefficient, mass, velocity, acceleration, momentum, charge, spin, the speed of light, and the gravitational constant. Each physical quantity is given an ontological definition, derivation, quantification formula, and macroscopic correspondence. All coefficients (𝜔02, 𝐷, 𝑚, ℏ) have clear physical meaning and origin. Part Three: Ontological Interpretation of Motion. We argue that motion is perspective-dependent. Distance is the accumulation of effective markers. Both objects can claim they are not moving. Constancy of distance is a dynamic equilibrium of chain breaking and rebuilding. The wave function itself has no velocity; velocity is a macroscopic reading. Part Four: Marker Interpretation of Group Velocity. Under two admitted ontological assumptions, we rigorously quantify the group velocity of the free electron wave packet. Keywords: ZTD theory; Marker Ontology; quantification of physical quantities; group velocity; perspective relativity; marker allocation conservation
Quantum mechanics has achieved unparalleled mathematical success, but has left a seriesof black boxes at the level of physical pictures: What does it mean that state vectors livein a complex Hilbert space? Why does the imaginary unit i appear? Where does thecommutation relation [ ˆX , ˆp] = iℏ come from? Why does measurement cause collapse? Whydoes the Born rule hold?In this paper, within the framework of ZTD (Marker Ontology), we provide physicalontological interpretations for every mathematical object of quantum mechanics.The positioning of this paper must first be made clear: this is a conceptual frameworkpaper, not a complete mathematical derivation. The goal of this paper is to establisha mapping relationship between the ZTD physical picture and the mathematical structure ofquantum mechanics. For each item in the list, rigorous mathematical argumentation needsto be gradually developed in subsequent work. Among the mathematical derivations givenin this paper, some are already rigorous (such as the discrete derivation of the commutationrelation), some are still conceptual (such as the derivation of the Born rule), and some carrycircularity risks (such as the borrowing of the Fermi golden rule for the Born rule). Theseare honestly marked in the text.The core mappings include:1. Complex Hilbert space corresponds to the complex amplitude space on the primitivenetwork;2. State vectors are the mathematical generalization of diffuse patterns;3. The wave function is the physical distribution of the diffuse pattern on the primitivenetwork;4. The imaginary unit i is the phase encoding of step counting;5. The commutation relation is the continuum limit of the discrete adjacency matrix;6. Unitary evolution is the pattern maintaining itself;7. Measurement is the capture of the diffuse pattern by an atom;8. The Born rule is the statistical result of capture;9. Quantum entanglement is the sharing of the same birth event;10. The uncertainty principle is a necessary consequence of spatial discreteness.This paper does not invent new mathematics, nor does it propose new testable predictions.Its goal is: to turn quantum mechanics from “mathematical mechanics” backinto “physical mechanics.”Keywords: quantum mechanics; mathematical structure; physical mapping; ontology; diffusepattern; unitary evolution; ZTD theory
Abstract This paper proposes a foundational physical paradigm framework with energy as the sole physical ontology. Different from the field ontology of quantum field theory and the particle-pilot wave dual ontology of Bohmian mechanics, it establishes a strictly divided four-layer cognitive system of “energy ontology–wave motion–node appearance–mathematical tool”. Energy is defined as the irreducible sole physical ontology (ontological preset); waves are not independent physical entities, but the inherent propagation mode of energy in spacetime following the principle of least action; microscopic particles are not basic material objects, but local dynamic nodes formed by coherent superposition and nonlinear self-focusing of multiple energy waves; fields and wave functions are pure mathematical tools for describing the spacetime distribution of energy without independent entity attributes. Based on the Fourier superposition principle, standing wave formation mechanism and the principle of least action, this paper fundamentally resolves the paradox of wave-particle duality and clarifies the inevitability of energy fluctuation. Two basic forms of energy waves are defined: traveling waves without rest mass for global energy transport and localized standing waves for bound energy localization, with clear transformation mechanisms and physical division of labor. Based on three self-consistent underlying axioms, two types of nodes (linear superposition/photon-type and nonlinear self-focusing/matter-type) are distinguished, the coupling rules of transverse and longitudinal waves are reconstructed, and the microscopic origins of gravity and strong force are unified. To resolve core theoretical disputes, this paper supplements a dynamic equilibrium radiation mechanism to eliminate the energy dissipation paradox of stable particles, revises wave coupling rules to be compatible with QED photon-photon scattering experimental facts, and completes the physical dimension and quantitative paving of node formation thresholds to upgrade theoretical self-consistency. Meanwhile, phase chirality is introduced as the unified origin of charge, spin and matter-antimatter asymmetry, and four experimentally verifiable physical predictions and falsifiable inferences are proposed. This framework only updates the underlying ontology of modern physics, fully compatible with existing mature quantitative calculation systems, without subverting the experimental conclusions of the Standard Model and general relativity, providing a new path for the paradigm innovation of fundamental physics unification.
Diffraction and interference fringes are stable and reproducible objective phenomena in optical experiments. Mainstream quantum mechanics puts forward the ontological interpretation of wave particle duality. It holds that the material ontology of micro particles such as photons inherently possesses both particle and wave properties, and attributes diffraction and interference phenomena directly to the intrinsic matter wave behavior of particles. This interpretation stays at the level of observational appearance and avoids underlying ontological dynamic mechanisms. It represents a research approach that deduces the intrinsic properties of material ontology merely from external observations. Within the framework of the light ontology theory, a photon is an energy state object. Energy and motion at the speed of light form an inseparable whole and are permanently bound together and cannot be separated. In the real universe, no photon with energy that does not travel at the speed of light has ever been observed. Nor has any object moving at the speed of light without energy been detected. The two cannot exist independently from one another. A photon has no physical volume but possesses inherent fixed transverse trembling property. At the moment a photon is generated, it acquires a definite trembling angle within a 360 degree spatial plane perpendicular to its propagation direction. This transverse trembling orientation remains unchanged without physical collision interaction. When the transverse trembling of a photon can reach the slit wall, absorption and reradiation secondary scattering will occur. Massive secondary photons superpose statistically to form bright and dark diffraction and interference fringes. Slit walls are stacked by large numbers of atoms. Their spatial scale is hundreds of thousands to tens of millions times larger than the scale of photon transverse trembling. For photons, slit walls constitute huge physical barriers and can produce significant interactions with trembling photons. The wave function is only a mathematical tool for fitting experimental data. Good fitting performance of a mathematical model does not mean its corresponding physical interpretation equals objective physical reality. This paper proposes a new set of comparative decisionmaking experiments. The key innovation is to place a linear polarizer in front of the slit. Before photons contact the slit, the transverse trembling orientation of photons is pre screened. The transverse trembling direction of transmitted photons is made parallel to the orientation of vertical slit walls to suppress oscillation components perpendicular to slit walls and make it difficult for photons to hit slit walls. Polarizers with different grating line widths can be replaced to observe the influence of the grating scale of polarizers on experimental results. According to the physical mechanism of slit wall scattering, characteristic diffraction and interference fringes will be greatly attenuated and only the central direct light spot will remain. Non ideal device characteristics will bring a small amount of stray scattering background, but complete bright and dark diffraction and interference structures will not appear. According to the traditional ontological interpretation of wave particle duality, the geometric parameters of slits remain completely unchanged. Only polarization orientation screening is conducted and the intrinsic matter wave of particle ontology is not affected. Therefore diffraction and interference fringes should be fully preserved. The two theories produce mutually exclusive observable predictions. This experiment can test whether the ontological interpretation of wave particle duality holds true. This paper does not deny objective diffraction and interference phenomena, nor does it deny the practical value of wave function as an engineering calculation tool.
The core dilemma of modern physics stems from two unproven ontological presuppositions: that spacetime is an innate container preceding matter, and that matter is an entity composed of indivisible particles. These presuppositions have led to the fundamental split between general relativity and quantum mechanics, giving rise to a series of century-old unsolved problems such as wave-particle duality, the quantum measurement paradox, the nature of gravity, and dark matter and dark energy. Based on the sole unfalsifiable first principle that "the essence of cognition is succession", this paper deduces a complete ontological system through pure a priori reasoning: the authentic physical world consists solely of one-dimensional successive rays and their transverse coupling relations; time is the successive extension of rays, space is the network of coupling relations, matter is the steady state of closed coupling, and all interactions are different manifestations of coupling actions. Particles are not authentically existing entities, but rather point-like endpoint phenomena presented in the observer's phenomenal world when two rays undergo an all-or-nothing coupling. Based on this framework, this paper uniformly explains all core phenomena in both the microscopic quantum domain and the macroscopic relativistic domain in one go, resolves all traditional physical paradoxes at the ontological level, achieves the ontological unification of the four fundamental forces, and proposes three falsifiable core predictions. This paper demonstrates that all theories of traditional physics are approximate descriptions of the authentic physical world at the phenomenal level, and their fundamental error lies in mistaking "coupling endpoints" for "primitive entities", thereby reversing the causal relationship. Cognitive Succession Ontology provides a logically consistent and universally unified ultimate foundation for physics.