Measurement, Decoherence and Chaos in Quantum Pinball

The effect of introducing measuring devices in a ``quantum pinball'' system is shown to lead to a chaotic evolution for the particle position as defined in Bohm's approach to Quantum Mechanics.Comment: Latex, uses ioplppt style, two figures. Also can be ftp'd anonymously from: ftp://zaphod.phys.port.ac.uk/pub/papers/paper2

Causal Interpretation and Quantum Phase Space

We show that the de Broglie-Bohm interpretation can be easily implemented in quantum phase space through the method of quasi-distributions. This method establishes a connection with the formalism of the Wigner function. As a by-product, we obtain the rules for evaluating the expectation values and probabilities associated with a general observable in the de Broglie-Bohm formulation. Finally, we discuss some aspects of the dynamics.Comment: 13 pages, LaTe

About Some Problems Raised by the Relativistic Form of De-Broglie--Bohm Theory of Pilot Wave

The standard relativistic de-Broglie--Bohm theory has the problems of tacyonic solutions and the incorrect non-relativistic limit. In this paper we obtain a relativistic theory, not decomposing the relativistic wave equations but looking for a generalization of non-relativistic Bohmian theory in such a way that the correct non-relativistic limit emerges. In this way we are able to construct a relativistic de-Broglie--Bohm theory both for a single particle and for a many-particle system. At the end, the theory is extended to the curved space-time and the connection with quantum gravity is discussed.Comment: 13 pages, RevTeX. To appear in Physica Scripta, 200

Comment on "A simple experiment to test Bell's inequality", J.-M. Vigoureux

In the above paper, it is claimed that with a particular use of the Bell inequality a simple single photon experiment could be performed to show the impossibility of any deterministic hidden variable theory in quantum optics. A careful analysis of the concept of probability for hidden variables and a detailed discussion of the hidden variable model of de Broglie-Bohm show that the reasoning and main conclusion of this paper are not correct.Comment: 3pages, no figure, accepted for publication in Optics Communications. accepted for publication in Optics Communication

Photon mass and quantum effects of the Aharonov-Bohm type

The magnetic field due to the photon rest mass $m_{ph}$ modifies the standard results of the Aharonov-Bohm effect for electrons, and of other recent quantum effects. For the effect involving a coherent superposition of beams of particles with opposite electromagnetic properties, by means of a table-top experiment, the limit $m_{ph}x10^{-51}g$ is achievable, improving by 6 orders of magnitude that derived by Boulware and Deser for the Aharonov-Bohm effect.Comment: 5 page

Internal structures of electrons and photons: the concept of extended particles revisited

The theoretical foundations of quantum mechanics and de Broglie--Bohm mechanics are analyzed and it is shown that both theories employ a formal approach to microphysics. By using a realistic approach it can be established that the internal structures of extended particles comply with a wave-equation. Including external potentials yields the Schrodinger equation, which, in this context, is arbitrary due to internal energy components. The statistical interpretation of wave functions in quantum theory as well as Heisenberg's uncertainty relations are shown to be an expression of this, fundamental, arbitrariness. Electrons and photons can be described by an identical formalism, providing formulations equivalent to the Maxwell equations. Electrostatic interactions justify the initial assumption of electron-wave stability: the stability of electron waves can be referred to vanishing intrinsic fields of interaction. The theory finally points out some fundamental difficulties for a fully covariant formulation of quantum electrodynamics, which seem to be related to the existing infinity problems in this field.Comment: 14 pages (RevTeX one column) and 1 figure (eps). For a full list of available papers see http://info.tuwien.ac.at/cms/wh

Relaxation to quantum equilibrium for Dirac fermions in the de Broglie-Bohm pilot-wave theory

Numerical simulations indicate that the Born rule does not need to be postulated in the de Broglie-Bohm pilot-wave theory, but arises dynamically (relaxation to quantum equilibrium). These simulations were done for a particle in a two-dimensional box whose wave-function obeys the non-relativistic Schroedinger equation and is therefore scalar. The chaotic nature of the de Broglie-Bohm trajectories, thanks to the nodes of the wave-function which act as vortices, is crucial for a fast relaxation to quantum equilibrium. For spinors, we typically do not expect any node. However, in the case of the Dirac equation, the de Broglie-Bohm velocity field has vorticity even in the absence of nodes. This observation raises the question of the origin of relaxation to quantum equilibrium for fermions. In this article, we provide numerical evidence to show that Dirac particles also undergo relaxation, by simulating the evolution of various non-equilibrium distributions for two-dimensional systems (the 2D Dirac oscillator and the Dirac particle in a spherical 2D box).Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure