2018/05/31 by Jan Sperling, Sperling, J.
Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #FOS: Physical sciences #Quantum Information and Cryptography #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum Physics (quant-ph) #Spectroscopy and Quantum Chemical Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1805.12404
openalex publication_date 2018/05/31 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
It is demonstrated that the collapse of the wave function is equivalent to the continuity of measurement outcomes. The latter states that a second measurement has to result in the same outcome as the first measurement of the same observable for a vanishing time between both observations. In contrast to the exclusively quantum-physical collapse description, the equivalent continuity requirement also applies in classical physics, allowing for a comparison of both domains. In particular, it is found that quantum coherences are the single cause for measurable deviations in statistical properties due to the collapse. Therefore, the introduced approach renders it possible to characterize and quantify the unique features of the quantum-physical measurement problem within the framework of modern quantum resource theories and compare them to classical physics.