Related papers: Must Time Machine Be Unstable against Vacuum Fluct…
We study nonequilibrium fluctuation theorems in the presence of a time-reversal symmetry-breaking field and nonconservative forces, in a stochastic as well as a deterministic set up. We consider a system and a heat bath, called the combined…
At the intersection of quantum theory and relativity lies the possibility of a clock experiencing a superposition of proper times. We consider quantum clocks constructed from the internal degrees of relativistic particles that move through…
Quantum computation with quantum data that can traverse closed timelike curves represents a new physical model of computation. We argue that a model of quantum computation in the presence of closed timelike curves can be formulated which…
As a basis for epistemological study of ``time,'' we analyze three suspect phenomena introduced by modern physics: non-locality, asymmetric aging and advanced interaction. It is shown that all three arise in connection with what has to be…
Fluctuation Theorems are central in stochastic thermodynamics, as they allow for quantifying the irreversibility of single trajectories. Although they have been experimentally checked in the classical regime, a practical demonstration in…
In this paper we propose that cosmological time is a quantum observable that does not commute with other quantum operators essential for the definition of cosmological states, notably the cosmological constant. This is inspired by…
Everett's interpretation of quantum mechanics was proposed to avoid problems inherent in the prevailing interpretational frame. It assumes that quantum mechanics can be applied to any system and that the state vector always evolves…
Whether or not space-time is fundamentally discrete is of central importance for the development of the theory of quantum gravity. If the fundamental description of space-time is discrete, typically represented in terms of a graph or…
A link between the possibility of extending a geodessically incomplete kinked spacetime to a spacetime which is geodesically complete and the energy conditions is discussed for the case of a cylindrically-symmetric spacetime kink. It is…
A mirror scattering vacuum fields is submitted to a quantum fluctuating radiation pressure. It also experiences a motional force, related to force fluctuations through fluctuation-dissipation relations. The resulting position fluctuations…
Quantum theory depends on an external classical time, and there ought to exist an equivalent reformulation of the theory which does not depend on such a time. The demand for the existence of such a reformulation suggests that quantum theory…
Time evolution generically entangles a quantum state with environmental degrees of freedom. The resulting increase in entropy changes the properties of that quantum system leading to "aging". It is interesting to ask if this familiar…
A fluctuation theorem for the nonequilibrium entropy production in quantum phase space is derived, which enables the consistent thermodynamic description of arbitrary quantum systems, open and closed. The new treatment naturally generalizes…
A new approach to vacuum decay in quantum field theory, based on a simple variational formulation in field space using a tunneling potential, is ideally suited to study the effects of gravity on such decays. The method allows to prove in…
An intriguing consequence of quantum field theory is that vacuum is not empty space; it is full of quantum fluctuating electromagnetic fields, or virtual photons, corresponding to their zero-point energy, even though the average number of…
The meaning of time in an open quantum system is considered under the assumption that both, system and environment, are quantum mechanical objects. The Hamilton operator of the system is non-Hermitian. Its imaginary part is the time…
A space consisting of two rapidly moving cosmic strings has recently been constructed by Gott that contains closed timelike curves. The global structure of this space is analysed and is found that, away from the strings, the space is…
We argue that space and space-time emerge as a consequence of dynamical collapse of the wave function of macroscopic objects. Locality and separability are properties of our approximate, emergent universe. At the fundamental level,…
Some physical effects of time averaged quantum electric field fluctuations are discussed. The one loop radiative correction to potential scattering are approximately derived from simple arguments which invoke vacuum electric field…
We consider the time evolution of simple quantum systems under the influence of random fluctuations of the control parameters. We show that when the parameters fluctuate sufficiently fast, there is a cancellation effect of the noise. We…