English

Bohmian mechanics for instrumentalists

Quantum Physics 2020-03-12 v3 Other Condensed Matter High Energy Physics - Phenomenology

Abstract

We formulate Bohmian mechanics (BM) such that the main objects of concern are macroscopic phenomena, while microscopic particle trajectories only play an auxiliary role. Such a formulation makes it easy to understand why BM always makes the same measurable predictions as standard quantum mechanics (QM), irrespectively of the details of microscopic trajectories. Relativistic quantum field theory (QFT) is interpreted as an effective long-distance theory that at smaller distances must be replaced by some more fundamental theory. Analogy with condensed-matter physics suggests that this more fundamental theory could have a form of non-relativistic QM, offering a simple generic resolution of an apparent conflict between BM and relativistic QFT.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1811.11643,
  title  = {Bohmian mechanics for instrumentalists},
  author = {H. Nikolic},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1811.11643},
  year   = {2020}
}

Comments

20 pages, version accepted for publication in Int. J. Quantum Inf

R2 v1 2026-06-23T06:23:46.845Z