Notes on coarse grainings and functions of observables (Q819290)

Observables of a system are here defined in terms of semispectral measures over Hilbert Space. A Naimark dilation associates with an observable, a spectral measure over an associated Hilbert Space. Separability of observables is then defined in terms of the range of this spectral measure being a separable Boolean subalgebra in the projection lattice of the Hilbert Space. Such subalgebras are the ranges of real projection measures. Section 2 sets out key known properties of Boolean subalgebras in projection lattices, ``part of the folklore of the subject though hard to find in the literature''. (p.~243) In section 3 these are used to prove new results concerning the conditions required for observables to be separable. Section 4 considers the ranges of observables and in particular the relation of coarse graining, where the range of one observable is contained in the range of another. Although such observables may not be functions of each other, functional relations are established.