English

A modal-Hamiltonian interpretation of quantum mechanics

Quantum Physics 2008-02-04 v2

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to introduce a new member of the family of the modal interpretations of quantum mechanics. In this modal-Hamiltonian interpretation, the Hamiltonian of the quantum system plays a decisive role in the property-ascription rule that selects the definite-valued observables whose possible values become actual. We show that this interpretation is effective for solving the measurement problem, both in its ideal and its non-ideal versions, and we argue for the physical relevance of the property-ascription rule by applying it to well-known physical situations. Moreover, we explain how this interpretation supplies a description of the elemental categories of the ontology referred to by the theory, where quantum systems turn out to be bundles of possible properties.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.quant-ph/0610121,
  title  = {A modal-Hamiltonian interpretation of quantum mechanics},
  author = {Olimpia Lombardi and Mario Castagnino},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:quant-ph/0610121},
  year   = {2008}
}

Comments

82 pages, no figures. Forthcoming in Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics

R2 v1 2026-07-22T19:57:30.216Z