The complex and quaternionic quantum bit from relativity of simultaneity on an interferometer
From MaRDI portal
Publication:4646907
Abstract: The patterns of fringes produced by an interferometer have long been important testbeds for our best contemporary theories of physics. Historically, interference has been used to contrast quantum mechanics to classical physics, but recently experiments have been performed that test quantum theory against even more exotic alternatives. A physically motivated family of theories are those where the state space of a two-level system is given by a sphere of arbitrary dimension. This includes classical bits, and real, complex and quaternionic quantum theory. In this paper, we consider relativity of simultaneity (that observers may disagree about the order of events at different locations) as applied to a two-armed interferometer, and show that this forbids most interference phenomena more complicated than those of complex quantum theory. If interference must depend on some relational property of the setting (such as path difference), then relativity of simultaneity will limit state spaces to standard complex quantum theory, or a subspace thereof. If this relational assumption is relaxed, we find one additional theory compatible with relativity of simultaneity: quaternionic quantum theory. Our results have consequences for current laboratory interference experiments: they have to be designed carefully to avoid rendering beyond-quantum effects invisible by relativity of simultaneity.
Recommendations
Cites work
- scientific article; zbMATH DE number 5977112 (Why is no real title available?)
- scientific article; zbMATH DE number 996724 (Why is no real title available?)
- scientific article; zbMATH DE number 515467 (Why is no real title available?)
- scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1885140 (Why is no real title available?)
- A derivation of quantum theory from physical requirements
- A framework for phase and interference in generalized probabilistic theories
- An operational approach to spacetime symmetries: Lorentz transformations from quantum communication
- Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?
- Compact Lie Groups
- Derivation of the rules of quantum mechanics from information-theoretic axioms
- Division algebras and quantum theory
- Entanglement and the three-dimensionality of the Bloch ball
- Higher-order interference and single-system postulates characterizing quantum theory
- Proposed experiment to test local hidden-variable theories
- Quantum mechanics as quantum measure theory
- Ruling out multi-order interference in quantum mechanics
- Some remarks about Lie groups transitive on spheres and tori
- Theories of systems with limited information content
- Three-dimensionality of space and the quantum bit: an information-theoretic approach
- Transformation groups of spheres
- Violation of Bell's Inequality under Strict Einstein Locality Conditions
Cited in
(2)
This page was built for publication: The complex and quaternionic quantum bit from relativity of simultaneity on an interferometer
Report a bug (only for logged in users!)Click here to report a bug for this page (MaRDI item Q4646907)
