Related papers: Ontological models for quantum theory as functors
We propose an exercise in which one attempts to deduce the formalism of quantum mechanics solely from phenomenological observations. The only assumed inputs are the multi-time probability distributions estimated from the results of…
The dynamics-from-permutations of classical Ising spins is generalized here for an arbitrarily long chain. This serves as an ontological model with discrete dynamics generated by pairwise exchange interactions defining the unitary update…
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…
Observable properties of a classical physical system can be modelled deterministically as functions from the space of pure states to outcomes; dually, states can be modelled as functions from the algebra of observables to outcomes. The…
We consider in general terms dynamical systems with finite-dimensional, non-simply connected configuration-spaces. The fundamental group is assumed to be finite. We analyze in full detail those ambiguities in the quantization procedure that…
I discuss a set of strong, but probabilistically intelligible, axioms from which one can {\em almost} derive the appratus of finite dimensional quantum theory. Stated informally, these require that systems appear completely classical as…
We describe a system of axioms that, on one hand, is sufficient for constructing the standard mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics and, on the other hand, is necessary from the phenomenological standpoint. In the proposed scheme, the…
Quantum mechanics is formulated as a geometric theory on a Hilbert manifold. Images of charts on the manifold are allowed to belong to arbitrary Hilbert spaces of functions including spaces of generalized functions. Tensor equations in this…
The formalism of quantum theory in Hilbert space has been applied with success to the modeling and explanation of several cognitive phenomena, whereas traditional cognitive approaches were problematical. However, this 'quantum cognition…
Studying the extent to which realism is compatible with quantum mechanics teaches us something about the quantum mechanical universe, regardless of the validity of such realistic assumptions. It has also recently been appreciated that these…
Epistemic models of nature prove to be problematic in many settings, particularly in those in which measurement procedures are ill-defined. By contrast, in ontological models of nature, measurement results are independent of the procedure…
We first prove that ontological models of the quantum state which are capable of reproducing the Born probability rule and fall in the class of $\psi$-epistemic models are inconsistent with the Sch{\"o}dinger time evolution. We then model…
In operational quantum mechanics two measurements are called operationally equivalent if they yield the same distribution of outcomes in every quantum state and hence are represented by the same operator. In this paper, I will show that the…
Classical mechanics, relativity, electrodynamics and quantum mechanics are often depicted as separate realms of physics, each with its own formalism and notion. This remains unsatisfactory with respect to the unity of nature and to the…
The (consistent or decoherent) histories interpretation provides a consistent realistic ontology for quantum mechanics, based on two main ideas. First, a logic (system of reasoning) is employed which is compatible with the Hilbert-space…
We construct the quadratic analogue of the boson Fock functor. While in the first order case all contractions on the 1--particle space can be second quantized, the semigroup of contractions that admit a quadratic second quantization is much…
$\Psi$-epistemic models of quantum mechanics imply that the quantum state does not correspond to physical reality, but instead reflects the observer's knowledge of the underlying quantum system. The epistemic view of the quantum state has…
The basic notions of quantum mechanics are formulated in terms of separable infinite dimensional Hilbert space $\mathcal{H}$. In terms of the Hilbert lattice $\mathcal{L}$ of closed linear subspaces of $\mathcal{H}$ the notions of state and…
In this paper, we present a general theory of finite quantum measurements, for which we assume that the state space of the measured system is a finite dimensional Hilbert space and that the possible outcomes of a measurement is a finite set…
One of the foundational challenges in both Quantum Field Theory and the philosophy of physics lies in the traditional binary classification of entities as either real or unreal. The classical view posits that material entities are real,…