English

Quantum theory is classical mechanics with non-local existence

Quantum Physics 2009-12-15 v1

Abstract

I propose a new and direct connection between classical mechanics and quantum mechanics where I derive the quantum mechanical propagator from a variational principle. This variational principle is Hamilton's modified principle generalized to allow many paths due to the non-local existence of particles in phase space. This principle allows a physical system to evolve non-locally in phase space while still allowing a representation that uses many classical paths. Whereas a point in phase space represents a classical system's state, I represent the state of a non-local system by a mixed trajectory. This formulation naturally leads to the transactional interpretation for resolving the paradoxes of the measurement problem. This principle also suggests a more flexible framework for formulating theories based on invariant actions and provides a single conceptual framework for discussing many areas of science.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.0912.2474,
  title  = {Quantum theory is classical mechanics with non-local existence},
  author = {John Hegseth},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:0912.2474},
  year   = {2009}
}

Comments

13 pages, 3 figures

R2 v1 2026-06-21T14:23:11.812Z