A model of spontaneous wavefunction collapse, which is explicitly local and Lorentz-invariant, is defined. Some of the predictions of the model for specific experimental situations are derived. It is shown that, although incompatible collapses, e.g. on opposite sides of an EPR-type of experiment, can occur, they will not persist in time and that eventually only compatible results will be obtained. The probabilities of particular results, however, will in general not agree with the predictions of quantum theory. We argue that it is unlikely that the deviations would have been seen in any experiment yet performed.
A model of spontaneous wavefunction collapse, which is explicitly local and Lorentz-invariant, is defined. Some of the predictions of the model for specific experimental situations are derived. It is shown that, although incompatible collapses, e.g. on opposite sides of an EPR-type of experiment, can occur, they will not persist in time and that eventually only compatible results will be obtained. The probabilities of particular results, however, will in general not agree with the predictions of quantum theory. We argue that it is unlikely that the deviations would have been seen in any experiment yet performed.
Wavefunction collapse is usually seen as a discontinuous violation of the unitary evolution of a quantum system, caused by the observation. Moreover, the collapse appears to be nonlocal in a sense which seems at odds with general relativity. In this article the possibility that the wavefunction evolves continuously and hopefully unitarily during the measurement process is analyzed. It is argued that such a solution has to be formulated using a time symmetric replacement of the initial value problem in quantum mechanics. Major difficulties in apparent conflict with unitary evolution are identified, but eventually its possibility is not completely ruled out. This interpretation is in a weakened sense both local and realistic, without contradicting Bell's theorem. Moreover, if it is true, it makes general relativity consistent with quantum mechanics in the semiclassical framework. Quanta 2016; 5: 19–33.
Despite its remarkable success in describing microscopic phenomena, quantum mechanics continues to pose unresolved foundational questions concerning measurement, nonlocality, wavefunction collapse, and the nature of physical reality. These issues were highlighted by the EPR paradox. Quantum mechanics predicts that measuring one particle’s observable instantaneously determines the state of the other, seemingly violating special relativity’s prohibition of faster-than-light influences and suggesting an incomplete description of physical reality. However, Bell’s theorem has largely ruled out local hidden variable theories. In this paper, I critically examine the assumptions in deriving Bell’s theorem and demonstrate that the theorem does not apply strictly to quantum mechanics. By assuming measurement is always accompanied by uncontrollable environment interactions, I show that quantum theory can be local and realism with decoherence in EPR-like measurement. Specifically, I apply the quantum decoherence framework, pioneered by Zeh, Zurek and Leggett to analyze an EPR-like system using system-environment interactions as a measurement model. The results illustrate that measurement on one entangled particle does not instantaneously collapse the system's wavefunction. Instead, the local wavefunctions of the measured particle and its environment evolve dynamically, while the remote particle’s wavefunction remains unchanged. Environment-induced decoherence selects pointer states and rapidly suppresses quantum correlations through strictly local interactions, giving rise to the appearance of wavefunction collapse. These findings challenge the conventional interpretation of Bell’s theorem and suggest that quantum mechanics fundamentally respects locality and realism if the wavefunction is treated as an ontic entity. This work offers a potential path toward a locally realistic quantum theory in alignment with Einstein’s vision. It not only strengthens the conceptual foundations of quantum mechanics, but also carries tremendous implications for quantum information processing and computing.
Review and preview In chapters 6 and 7, I described some links between locality and the treatment of probabilities in models of the EPR–Bohm experiment. From chapter 6, the main lesson was that, given the strict correlations of quantum mechanics, factorizability of the two-time probabilities is equivalent to two-time determinism. I also noted there that an adequate factorizable theory – one that avoids Bell's theorem – is possible only if λ-independence fails. In chapter 7, I argued that weak symmetry, local determination, and independent evolution together entail deterministic results and weak deterministic transitions. In chapter 8, I discussed the relationships among the locality conditions of chapter 6 and 7, Lorentz-invariance, and ‘metaphysical’ locality, especially local causality. I have by no means tried to give general answers to the questions raised there. Indeed, part of my thesis is that there is no general answer to be had. Nonetheless, one can use the results of chapters 6 and 7 to investigate the status of various interpretations. Most obviously, they can be used to evaluate whether a given theory is local: if a theory can be shown to violate one or more of the types of determinism entailed by the locality conditions of chapters 6 and 7, then that theory must be non-local in some sense.
Non-local forces exist in nature for two reasons. First that the recent experiments on locality are supposed to be accurate enough. Second that there is no local theory that can reproduce all the predictions of orthodox quantum theory which, almost for about a century, have been proved to be correct experimentally again and again. This thesis concerns both of these. A brief discussion of the measurement in quantum theory is followed by two comments which show that the quantum description is frame dependent and that the collapse of the wave-function of a system may occur without the relevant measurement being performed. After this the Bohm model and a modified version of the Bohm model are described. Next we introduce a new method for obtaining the Bell-type inequalities which can be used for testing locality. We derive more inequalities by this method than obtained by other existing procedures. Using Projection Valued(PV) and Positive Operator Valued Measures(POVM) measurements we have designed experiments which violates one of the Bell inequalities by a larger factor than existing violations which in turn could increase the accuracy of experiments to test for non-locality. This is our first result. After discussing the non-locality and non-Lorentz invariant features of the Bohm model, its retarded version, namely Squires' model - which is local and Lorentz invariant - is introduced. A problem with this model, that is the ambiguity in the cases where the wave-function depends on time, is removed by using the multiple-time wave-function. Finally, we apply the model to one of the experiments of locality and prove that it is in good agreement with the orthodox quantum theory.
Despite its remarkable success in describing microscopic phenomena, quantum mechanics continues to pose unresolved foundational questions concerning measurement, nonlocality, wavefunction collapse, and the nature of physical reality. These issues were highlighted by the EPR paradox1-2, in which Einstein and his co-authors examined the measurement of entangled particles in space-like separation. Quantum mechanics predicts that measuring one particle’s observable instantaneously determines the state of the other, seemingly violating special relativity’s prohibition of faster-than-light influences and suggesting an incomplete description of physical reality. However, Bell’s theorem3-5, along with the Bell-Kochen-Specker theorem6-10 and subsequent experiments, has largely ruled out local hidden variable theories. In this work, I apply the quantum decoherence framework11-13, pioneered by Zeh, Zurek, Joos and Leggett et al. to analyze an EPR-like system using system-environment interactions as a measurement model. I demonstrate that measurement on one entangled particle does not instantaneously collapse the system's wavefunction. Instead, the local wavefunctions of the measured particle and its environment evolve dynamically, while the remote particle’s wavefunction remains unchanged. Environment-induced decoherence selects pointer states and rapidly suppresses quantum correlations through local interactions, giving rise to the appearance of wavefunction collapse. These findings suggest that quantum mechanics can be reconciled with local realism if the wavefunction is treated as an ontic entity, offering a potential path toward a locally realistic quantum theory in alignment with Einstein’s vision.
We first consider the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) paradox for the system of two particles with spin 1/2 with entangled spins in first-quantized quantum mechanics (QM). If measurement is governed by wavefunction collapse, then gedanken experiments show that a number of fundamental principles including conservation of angular momentum and the Heisenberg uncertainty principle can be violated. We conclude that the collapse of the spin part of the wavefunction cannot happen and therefore an EPR paradox does not arise for this system. QM unitarity alone is sufficient to rule out "spooky" action at a distance. The absence of spin wavefunction collapse leads to several interesting conclusions about how measurement works in QM: When wavefunction collapse does not happen, (i) a signal from a macroscopic measuring device indicating that a system is in a state S does not necessarily mean that it is or was in S and (ii) the uncertainty in QM at the microscopic level is transmitted to uncertainty in signals for the macroscopic measuring device. We derive two general results on how quantum measurement works and illustrate them in a spin-1/2 measurement. In contrast to first-quantized QM, in quantum field theory we are unable to fully rule out the possibility of wavefunction collapse. However, when we insist on unitarity (thereby excluding the possibility of wavefunction collapse) and additionally take into account in the wavefunction all degrees of freedom involved in the measurement (including those of the equipment, experimentalists, etc.), a consistant acceptable understanding of the Bell-inequality-type experiments involving entangled photon polarizations emerges including the absence of an EPR paradox. The ability of an experimentalist to be aware of his perceptions but unable to be conscious of other components of a generalized Schrodinger Cat plays a role in resolving the Measurement Problem.