1,527 research outputs found
Cosmogenesis and Collapse
Some possible benefits of dynamical collapse for a quantum theory of
cosmogenesis are discussed. These are a possible long wait before creation
begins, creation of energy and space, and choice of a particular universe out
of a superposition.Comment: For a festschrift in Foundations of Physics in honor of Daniel
Greenberger and Helmut Rauch in Foundations of Physics. This updates the
previous version by adding an appendix (Appendix B) which contains the exact
solution of a partial differential equation of importance in the pape
Quasirelativistic quasilocal finite wave-function collapse model
A Markovian wave function collapse model is presented where the
collapse-inducing operator, constructed from quantum fields, is a manifestly
covariant generalization of the mass density operator utilized in the
nonrelativistic Continuous Spontaneous Localization (CSL) wave function
collapse model. However, the model is not Lorentz invariant because two such
operators do not commute at spacelike separation, i.e., the time-ordering
operation in one Lorentz frame, the "preferred" frame, is not the time-ordering
operation in another frame. However, the characteristic spacelike distance over
which the commutator decays is the particle's Compton wavelength so, since the
commutator rapidly gets quite small, the model is "almost" relativistic. This
"QRCSL" model is completely finite: unlike previous, relativistic, models, it
has no (infinite) energy production from the vacuum state.
QRCSL calculations are given of the collapse rate for a single free particle
in a superposition of spatially separated packets, and of the energy production
rate for any number of free particles: these reduce to the CSL rates if the
particle's Compton wavelength is small compared to the model's distance
parameter. One motivation for QRCSL is the realization that previous
relativistic models entail excitation of nuclear states which exceeds that of
experiment, whereas QRCSL does not: an example is given involving quadrupole
excitation of the Ge nucleus.Comment: 10 pages, to be published in Phys. Rev.
Wavefunction Collapse and Conservation Laws
It is emphasized that the collapse postulate of standard quantum theory can
violate conservation of energy-momentum and there is no indication from where
the energy-momentum comes or to where it goes. Likewise, in the Continuous
Spontaneous Localization (CSL) dynamical collapse model, particles gain energy
on average. In CSL, the usual Schr\"odinger dynamics is altered so that a
randomly fluctuating classical field interacts with quantized particles to
cause wavefunction collapse. In this paper it is shown how to define energy for
the classical field so that the average value of the energy of the field plus
the quantum system {\it is} conserved for the ensemble of collapsing
wavefunctions. While conservation of just the first moment of energy is, of
course, much less than complete conservation of energy, this does support the
idea that the field could provide the conservation law balance when events
occur.Comment: 15 page
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