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Quantum Reality
The macroscopic world
of our classical intuition
emerges from
the microscopic world
of quantum mechanics
—Richard Feynman
At high intensity,
light behaves like an electromagnetic wave
BS
light
source 2
I! A
What happens if we
“turn down the light”?
Wave-Particle Duality
At low intensity,
the graininess of light becomes apparent:
photons, individual particles of light, are
detected by photo multipliers (PMTs)
PMT
yes
no
smoked yes
2
glass P! A yes
no
no
Probability yes
More generally,
the probability of detecting a photon is proportional to
the square of the electric field amplitude
Interferometer
Recombine the light
using two mirrors and another beam splitter
At high intensity,
waves interfere
constructively rightward
and destructively upward
dark
mirror
bright
mirror
I! A
2
What happens if we
“turn down the light”?
Superposition
At low intensity, light is so faint that
there is only one photon in the interferometer
at any one time
PMT
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
photon = a up + b right
Just as
the square of the electric field amplitude
corresponds to the probability
of detecting a photon,
in the superposition,
the absolute square of the weights
correspond to the probabilities
of measuring the alternatives:
P(up ) = a 2
P(right ) = b 2
z = 3 + 2i, i = "1
z = 32 + 2 2 = 13
2
Two Types of
Quantum Evolution
Schrödinger
Deterministic and continuous
evolution of quantum-level
complex-weighted superpositions
when system not observed/measured:
photon
S photon # = a up + b right
Measurement
Probabilistic and discontinuous
collapse of a superposition to classical
probability-weighted alternatives
when system is observed/measured:
$& up , P = a 2
photon#
M %
&' right , P = b 2
Which Path?
Can observe the path taken by the photon
by measuring the recoil of a “floating” mirror
PMT
yes
no
yes
yes
no
no
yes
measure
recoil
This experiment
elicits the particle nature of light,
while the previous experiment with the fixed mirrors
elicits the wave nature of light
The Elitzur-Vaidman
Bomb Testing Problem
Consider a design of bombs
whose detonators are so sensitive
even slightest touch will explode them
Unfortunately,
for some fraction of the manufactured bombs
the detonators are jammed
and the bombs are duds
Classically,
there is no way to identify good bombs
without exploding them
BANG!
PMT
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
yes
In particular,
it doesn’t collapse due to the recoil of the detonator
—the detonator must be jammed!
PMT
yes
yes
no
PMT
no
BANG!
What is a Measurement?
Consider a variation on the (in)famous
Schrödinger Cat Experiment
wherein a (good) bomb amplifies a
microscopic event to macroscopic proportions
?
Without measurement,
system evolves into superpositions of…
Does Consciousness
Collapse Superpositions?
Physicists like
Eugene Wigner and Henry Stapp
have suggested that the
Mystery of Consciousness
is connected to the
Mystery of Measurement
in Quantum Physics*
Physics seems
causally closed
except during the non-deterministic
collapse of quantum superpositions
Alternative Interpretations
There exist alternative interpretations
of quantum physics
that attempt to eliminate
some of the more bizarre aspects
of the standard “Copenhagen” interpretation,
especially the measurement problem:
Everett’s
Many Worlds/Histories Interpretation
the de Broglie-Bohm
Pilot Wave Interpretation
Cramer’s
Transactional Interpretation
However,
none of these interpretations
restore classical physics
or classical intuition
References
Roger Penrose
Shadows of the Mind:
A Search for the Missing Science of Consciousness
(Oxford University Press, 1994)
Johnjoe McFadden
Quantum Evolution
(W. W. Norton & Company, 2001)