Related papers: Quantum Mechanics and Closed Timelike Curves
In the quantum theory, it has been shown that one can see if a process has the time reversal symmetry by applying the matrix transposition and examining if it remains physical. However, recent discoveries regarding the indefinite causal…
We point out a fundamental problem that hinders the quantization of general relativity: quantum mechanics is formulated in terms of systems, typically limited in space but infinitely extended in time, while general relativity is formulated…
Acausal features of quantum electrodynamic processes are discussed. While these processes are not present for the classical electrodynamic theory, in the quantum electrodynamic theory, acausal processes are well known to exist. For example,…
The usual quantization of a classical space-time field does not touch the non-geometrical character of quantum mechanics. We believe that the deep problems of unification of general relativity and quantum mechanics are rooted in this poor…
Closed timelike curves (CTCs) are trajectories in spacetime that effectively travel backwards in time: a test particle following a CTC can in principle interact with its former self in the past. CTCs appear in many solutions of Einstein's…
The traditional formalism of non-relativistic quantum theory allows the state of a quantum system to extend across space, but only restricts it to a single instant in time, leading to distinction between theoretical treatments of spatial…
We propose a mathematical model of quantum spacetime as an infinite-dimensional manifold locally homeomorphic to an appropriate Schwartz space. This extends and unifies both the standard function space construction of quantum mechanics and…
Assuming that Quantum Mechanics is universal and that it can be applied over all scales, then the Universe is allowed to be in a quantum superposition of states, where each of them can correspond to a different space-time geometry. How can…
This paper discusses the quantum mechanics of closed timelike curves (CTC) and of other potential methods for time travel. We analyze a specific proposal for such quantum time travel, the quantum description of CTCs based on post-selected…
I propose to formalize quantum theories as topological quantum field theories in a generalized sense, associating state spaces with boundaries of arbitrary (and possibly finite) regions of space-time. I further propose to obtain such…
Three of the big puzzles of theoretical physics are the following: (i) There is apparently no time evolution in the dynamics of quantum general relativity, because the allowed quantum states must obey the Hamiltonian constraint. (ii) During…
It is shown that quantum mechanics is a plausible statistical description of an ontology described by classical electrodynamics. The reason that no contradiction arises with various no-go theorems regarding the compatibility of QM with a…
We formulate quantum mechanics in spacetimes with real-order fractional geometry and more general factorizable measures. In spacetimes where coordinates and momenta span the whole real line, Heisenberg's principle is proven and the…
Observed physical phenomena can be described well by quantum mechanics or general relativity. People may try to find an unified fundamental theory which mainly aims to merge gravity with quantum theory. However, difficulty in merging those…
We consider a toy model of the interaction of a qubit with an exotic space-time containing a time-like curve. Consistency seems to require that the global evolution of the qubit be non-unitary. Given that quantum mechanics is globally…
We show how quantum mechanics can be understood as a space-time theory provided that its spatial continuum is modelled by a variable real number (qrumber) continuum. Such a continuum can be constructed using only standard Hilbert space…
In this essay, we argue that the problem of time should not be regarded as an issue to be resolved within the prevailing framework for studying quantum gravity, but rather as an indication that there is an issue within the framework itself.…
Although most fundamental laws are invariant under time reversal, experience exhibits the presence of irreversible phenomena -- the arrows of time. Their origin lies in cosmology, and I argue that only quantum cosmology can provide the…
We describe the time evolution of quantum systems in a classical background space-time by means of a covariant derivative in an infinite dimensional vector bundle. The corresponding parallel transport operator along a timelike curve $\cC$…
Any acceptable quantum gravity theory must allow us to recover the classical spacetime in the appropriate limit. Moreover, the spacetime geometrical notions should be intrinsically tied to the behavior of the matter that probes them. We…