Related papers: What are Physical States?
At the primary level of reality as described by quantum field theory, a fundamental particle like an electron represents a stable, discrete, propagating excited state of its underlying quantum field. QFT also tells us that the lowest vacuum…
The quantum world is fascinating. It presents a description of nature that defies our most rooted concepts about what reality is. For example, quantum objects possess \lq\lq spooky\rq\rq\ properties that allow them to be in multiple places…
In classical physics, a single measurement can in principle reveal the state of a system. However, quantum theory permits numerous non-equivalent measurements on a physical system, each providing only limited information about the state.…
The paper proves that quantum mechanics is compatible with the constructive realism of modern philosophy of science. The proof is based on the observation that properties of quantum systems that are uniquely determined by their preparations…
We consider the possibility that all particles in the world are fundamentally identical, i.e., belong to the same species. Different masses, charges, spins, flavors, or colors then merely correspond to different quantum states of the same…
A quantum state can be understood in a loose sense as a map that assigns a value to every observable. Formalizing this characterization of states in terms of generalized probability distributions on the set of effects, we obtain a simple…
Theories in physics usually do not address ``the present''or ``the now''. However, they usually have a precise notion of an ``instant'' (or state). I review how this notion appears in relational point mechanics and how it suffices to…
Quantum mechanics of composite systems, gives rise to certain special states called entangled states. A physical system, that is in an entangled state displays an intricate correlation between its subsystems. There are also some composite…
The status of locality in quantum mechanics is analyzed from a nonstandard point of view. It is assumed that quantum states are relative, they depend on and are defined with respect to some bigger physical system which contains the former…
According to scientific realism, science gives us an approximately true description of what the world is like. But what does it mean? In this chapter, we focus on the ontological and metaphysical aspects of this discussion. That is, we are…
The nature of the physical space seems the most important subject in physics. A present paper proceeds from the assumption of physical reality of space contrary to the standard view of the space as a purely relational nonexistence - void.…
A century on from the development of quantum theory, the interpretation of a quantum state is still discussed. If a physicist claims to have produced a system with a particular wave function, does this represent directly a physical wave of…
To get out of logical deadlock in interpreting gedanken experiments like Schrodinger cat, actual meaning of a wave function, or a state, in the case of complex two-dimensional Hilbert space, is shown to represent transformations executing…
Any complete theory of physical reality must allow for the ubiquitous phenomenon of subjective experience at some level, or risk being conceptually incoherent. However, as long as the ontological status of subjectivity itself remains…
In this paper, we argue that there are foundational dilemmas in theoretical physics related to the concept of reality and the nature of mathematics in physics. Physical theory is treated as a conceptual organism which develops under the…
Decoherence may not solve all of the measurement problems of quantum mechanics. It is proposed that a solution to these problems may be to allow that superpositions describe physically real systems in the following sense. Each quantum…
We review the Pusey-Barret-Rudolph (PBR) theorem\cite{PBR} and their setup, and arrive to the conclusion that the reality of a quantum state $\psi$ is intrinsically attached to the measurement the system described by $\psi$ has undergone.…
I argue that we have good reason for being realist about quantum states. Though a research programme of attempting to construct a plausible theory that accounts for quantum phenomena without ontic quantum states is well-motivated, that…
Realism -- the idea that the concepts in physical theories refer to 'things' existing in the real world -- is introduced as a tool to analyze the status of the wave-function. Although the physical entities are recognized by the existence of…
It is argued that the orthodox interpretation of quantum mechanics is in conflict with the objective existence of space-time, and suggested that kets are labels which name real states of matter but do not directly describe them. Position is…