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arXiv:quant-ph/0202079

A Physical Quantum Model in a Smooth Topos

John David Fearns

Published Feb 14, 2002• 2 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We strengthen the case that the new logical perspective afforded by topos theory is suitable to the task of describing the physical world around us. In exploring some of the aspects of construction of a simple quantum-mechanical system in a mathematical universe different from that represented by set theory, we show that more thought and a better appreciation of the assumptions going into any mathematical model of the physical world are needed. We reflect on some of the mathematical consequences of this wider perspective of physics, explaining one interpretation of probabilistic values and numerical calculations in two mathematical universes governed by the less restrictive intuitionistic logic, and known to support the theory of synthetic differential geometry.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.quant-ph/0202079

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We strengthen the case that the new logical perspective afforded by topos theory is suitable to the task of describing the physical world around us. In exploring some of the aspects of construction of a simple quantum-mechanical system in a mathematical universe different from that represented by set theory, we show that more thought and a better appreciation of the assumptions going into any mathematical model of the physical world are needed. We reflect on some of the mathematical consequences of this wider perspective of physics, explaining one interpretation of probabilistic values and numerical calculations in two mathematical universes governed by the less restrictive intuitionistic logic, and known to support the theory of synthetic differential geometry.
The usual analytic approach to differential geometry was explored in the early 18th century using the defining notion of limit.With the advent of topos theory in the late 20th century, it has been possible to rediscover without the use of limits the differential and integral calculus, and its development into Synthetic Differential Geometry (SDG), in mathematical universes other than that represented by set theory.These universes obey a subtle but well understood generalisation of classical logic: intuitionistic logic.This thesis presents an exploration of the construction of quantum mechanics in the context of SDG.Chapter 1 introduces SDG, intuitionistic logic, topos theory and a particular topos used in the thesis.Chapter 2 explores the new logical perspective afforded by topos theory and SDG in describing the quantum world from an intuitionistic viewpoint.We build a working quantum-mechanical model using topos theory and analyse the physical and philosophical relevance of the logical steps taken, and account for the consistency of the model with its set-theoretic predecessor by suggesting a certain physical interpretation for the mathematics.In chapter 3, we analyse the extension of this quantum mechanics to state spaces with an infinite number of dimensions, and the associated use of various mathematical constructions that are taken for granted in set theory.Chapter 4 reaches an important proof of the lack of validity of the Spectral 4 The Spectral Theorem 108 4.1 Proof of Failure 4.2 The Internal Logic of the Spectral Theorem 4.3 Measurement-Enforced Validity 5 Conclusions 118 5.
Abstract Quantum set theory (QST) and topos quantum theory (TQT) are two long running projects in the mathematical foundations of quantum mechanics (QM) that share a great deal of conceptual and technical affinity. Most pertinently, both approaches attempt to resolve some of the conceptual difficulties surrounding QM by reformulating parts of the theory inside of nonclassical mathematical universes, albeit with very different internal logics. We call such mathematical universes, together with those mathematical and logical structures within them that are pertinent to the physical interpretation, ‘Q-worlds’. Here, we provide a unifying framework that allows us to (i) better understand the relationship between different Q-worlds, and (ii) define a general method for transferring concepts and results between TQT and QST, thereby significantly increasing the expressive power of both approaches. Along the way, we develop a novel connection to paraconsistent logic and introduce a new class of structures that have significant implications for recent work on paraconsistent set theory.
Topos theory has been suggested by Döring and Isham as an alternative mathematical structure with which to formulate, in general, physical theories. However, the motivation for using it to express quantum theory, lies in the desire to solve certain interpretational problems inherent in the standard formulation of the theory. In fact, the topos approach to quantum theory overcomes the instrumentalist–Copenhagen interpretation, rendering the theory more realist. The caveat is that one ends up with a multivalued–intuitionistic logic, rather than a Boolean logic.
This paper is the first in a series whose goal is to develop a fundamentally new way of constructing theories of physics. The motivation comes from a desire to address certain deep issues that arise when contemplating quantum theories of space and time. Our basic contention is that constructing a theory of physics is equivalent to finding a representation in a topos of a certain formal language that is attached to the system. Classical physics arises when the topos is the category of sets. Other types of theory employ a different topos. In this paper, we discuss two different types of language that can be attached to a system S. The first is a propositional language PL(S); the second is a higher-order, typed language L(S). Both languages provide deductive systems with an intuitionistic logic. The reason for introducing PL(S) is that, as shown in Paper II of the series, it is the easiest way of understanding, and expanding on, the earlier work on topos theory and quantum physics. However, the main thrust of our program utilizes the more powerful language L(S) and its representation in an appropriate topos.
The basic notion of how topoi can be utilized in physics is presented here. Topos and category theory serve as valuable tools which extend our ordinary set-theoretical conceptions, can further the study of quantum logic and give rise to new and 'neo-realistic' descriptions of quantum physics, i.e. make possible the construction of a general scheme for quantum physics, which 'looks like' the classical one. A novel way of writing theories of physics, by representing a formal language of a physical system, into an appropriate topos, is analyzed here. This novel approach is initiated by C.J. Isham and A. Doering and the major part of this paper comes from there; however there has been an effort in simplifying the basic ideas and do this work accessible to 'less experts' of the field. A minor, but not less important, part of this paper is devoted to resuming, in a concise way the background knowledge of logic, quantum logic and category theory, that is necessary for anyone who wishes to follow the whole topos approach.