Related papers: But, how can the atom be so stable, Dr. Maxwell?
Ever since the advent of quantum mechanics, it has been clear that the atoms composing matter do not obey Newton's laws. Instead, their behavior is described by the Schroedinger equation. Surprisingly though, until recently, no clear…
It is shown that all of the basic properties of the hydrogen atom can be consistently described in terms of classical electrodynamics instead of taking the electron to be a particle; we consider an electrically charged classical wave field,…
An interpretation and re-formulation of modern physics which removes the presumption of the space-time continuum, and bases physical theory on a small number of rational and empirical principles. After briefly describing the philosophical…
We show that quantum mechanics can be constructed as a classical field theory that correctly describes all basic quantum effects. We construct the self-consistent Maxwell-Pauli theory, from which the correct spontaneous emission spectrum of…
It has been known for over 100 years that there is a discrepancy between Maxwell's electrodynamics and the idea of a classical electron as the ``atom'' of electricity. This incompatibility is known under the terms 4/3 problem of the…
A theory for stabilization of quantum resonances by a mechanism similar to one leading to classical resonances in nonlinear systems is presented. It explains recent surprising experimental results, obtained for cold Cesium atoms when driven…
The usual formulation of quantum theory is rather abstract. In recent work I have shown that we can, nevertheless, obtain quantum theory from five reasonable axioms. Four of these axioms are obviously consistent with both classical…
The physics of many closed, conservative systems can be described by both classical and quantum theories. The dynamics according to classical theory is symplectic and admits linear instabilities which would initially seem at odds with a…
To date, quantum mechanics has proven to be our most successful theoretical model. However, it is still surrounded by a "mysterious halo" that can be summarized in a simple but challenging question: Why quantum phenomena are not understood…
Quantum computers take advantage of interfering quantum alternatives in order to handle problems that might be too time consuming with algorithms based on classical logic. Developing quantum computers requires new ways of thinking beyond…
The electronic structure of heavy elements, when described in a space-time which the metric is affected by the electromagnetic interaction, presents instabilities. These instabilities increase with the atomic number, and above a critical…
Quantum mechanics, one of the most successful theories in the history of science, was created to account for physical systems not describable by classical physics. Though it is consistent with all experiments conducted thus far, many of its…
Contrary to the widespread belief, the problem of the emergence of classical mechanics from quantum mechanics is still open. In spite of many results on the $\h \to 0$ asymptotics, it is not yet clear how to explain within standard quantum…
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…
Very recently we present a theory to discuss the nature of light and show that the quantization of light energy in vacuum can be derived directly from classical electromagnetic theory. In the theory a key concept of stability of statistical…
The building blocks of Nature, namely atoms and elementary particles, are described by quantum mechanics. This fundamental theory is the ground on which physicists have built their major mathematical models [1]. Today, the unique features…
Quantum theory is incredibly successful, explaining the microscopic world with great accuracy, from the behaviour of subatomic particles to chemical reactions to solid-state electronics. There is not a single experimental finding…
We formulate physically-motivated axioms for a physical theory which for systems with a finite number of degrees of freedom uniquely lead to Quantum Mechanics as the only nontrivial consistent theory. Complex numbers and the existence of…
Three problems stand in the way of deriving classical theories from quantum mechanics: those of realist interpretation, of classical properties and of quantum measurement. Recently, we have identified some tacit assumptions that lie at the…
Elementary particles are found in two different situations: (i) bound to metastable states of matter, for which angular momentum is quantized, and (ii) free, for which, due to their high energy-momentum and leaving aside inner a.m. or spin,…