2020/03/31 by Marek Żukowski, Marcin Markiewicz
Arts and Humanities · Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Bohr model #Contradiction #Eigenvalues and eigenvectors #Epistemology #Mesoscopic physics #Observable #Ontic #Philosophy #Philosophy and History of Science #Physics #Quantum #Quantum Information and Cryptography #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum decoherence #Quantum mechanics #Quantum system #Statistical physics #Theoretical physics #quant-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.126.130402
published as Phys. Rev. Lett. 126, 130402 (2021) · 9 pages. Final accepted version
openalex publication_date 2021/04/02 · arxiv created 2021/04/08 · arxiv updated 2021/04/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
"The unambiguous account of proper quantum phenomena must, in principle, include a description of all relevant features of experimental arrangement" (Bohr). The measurement process is composed of premeasurement (quantum correlation of the system with the pointer variable) and an irreversible decoherence via interaction with an environment. The system ends up in a probabilistic mixture of the eigenstates of the measured observable. For the premeasurement stage, any attempt to introduce an "outcome" leads, as we show, to a logical contradiction, 1=i. This nullifies claims that a modified concept of Wigner's friend, who just premeasures, can lead to valid results concerning quantum theory.