2019/06/30 by Nicholas Carrara, Carrara, Nicholas
Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics #Computational Physics (physics.comp-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum Physics (quant-ph) #Statistical Mechanics and Entropy
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1907.00361
openalex publication_date 2019/06/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Entropic Dynamics is a framework for deriving the laws of physics from entropic inference. In an (ED) of particles, the central assumption is that particles have definite yet unknown positions. By appealing to certain symmetries, one can derive a quantum mechanics of scalar particles and particles with spin, in which the trajectories of the particles are given by a stochastic equation. This is much like Nelson's stochastic mechanics which also assumes a fluctuating particle as the basis of the microstates. The uniqueness of ED as an entropic inference of particles allows one to continuously transition between fluctuating particles and the smooth trajectories assumed in Bohmian mechanics. In this work we explore the consequences of the ED framework by studying the trajectories of particles in the continuum between stochastic and Bohmian limits in the context of a few physical examples, which include the double slit and Stern-Gerlach experiments.