Time as an Observable
Abstract
The role of time in quantum mechanics is discussed. The differences between ordinary observables and an observable which corresponds to the time of an event is examined. In particular, the time-of-arrival of a particle to a fixed location is not an ordinary quantum mechanical observable. While we can measure if the particle arrives, we argue that the time at which it arrives always has an inherent ambiguity. The minimum inaccuracy of time-of-arrival measurements is given by dt>1/E where E is the kinetic energy of the particle. The use of time-of-arrival operators, as well as current operators, is examined critically.
Cite
@article{arxiv.quant-ph/9807058,
title = {Time as an Observable},
author = {J. Oppenheim and B. Reznik and W. G. Unruh},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:quant-ph/9807058},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
To be published in Proceedings of the 10th Max Born Symposium, eds. Ph. Blanchard, A. Jadczyk, Wroclaw - Sept., 1997, Springer-Verlag, Lecture Notes in Physics