English

Vacuum-Induced Quantum Decoherence and the Entropy Puzzle

High Energy Physics - Phenomenology 2011-08-04 v1

Abstract

Or: ``How to generate an ensemble in a single event?'' Following recent work on entropy in strong interactions, I explain the concept of environment-induced quantum decoherence in elementary quantum mechanics. The classically chaotic inverted oscillator becomes partially decoherent already in the environment of a single other oscillator performing only vacuum fluctuations. One finds exponential entropy growth in the subsystem with a Lyapunov exponent, which approaches the classical one for weak coupling. Presented at the Workshops on ``Quantum Infrared Physics'', Paris, 6 - 10.6.94, and ``QCD 94'', Montpellier, 7 - 13.7.94. Invited talk at the NATO Adv. Res. Workshop on ``Hot Hadronic Matter'', Divonne, 27.6. - 1.7.94. To appear in the Proceedings.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-ph/9407377,
  title  = {Vacuum-Induced Quantum Decoherence and the Entropy Puzzle},
  author = {Hans-Thomas Elze},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-ph/9407377},
  year   = {2011}
}

Comments

12 pages, CERN-TH.7372/94

R2 v1 2026-07-22T14:21:58.170Z