Geometry of quantum states

In the first part of this work, an attempt of a realistic interpretation ofquantum logic is presented. Propositions of quantum logic are interpreted as corresponding to certain macroscopic objects called filters; these objects are used to select beams of particles. The problem of representing the propositions as projectors in a Hilbert space is considered and the classical approach to this question due to Birkhoff and von Neumann is criticized as neglecting certain physically important properties of filters. A new approach to this problem is proposed.The second part of the paper contains a revision of the concept of a state in quantum mechanics. The set of all states of a physical system is considered as an abstract space with a geometry determined by the transition probabilities. The existence of a representation of states by vectors in a Hilbert space is shown to impose strong limitations on the geometric structure of the space of states. Spaces for which this representation does not exist are called non-Hilbertian. Simple examples of non-Hilbertian spaces are given and their possible physical meaning is discussed. The difference between Hilbertian and non-Hilbertian spaces is characterized in terms of measurable quantities.     

Brouwer-Zadeh (Fuzzy-intuitionistic) posets for unsharp quantum mechanics

The partial ordered structure which plays for unsharp quantum mechanics the same role of orthomodular lattices for ordinary quantum mechanics is introduced. Differently from the unsharp case, in which one can identify quantum propositions (i.e., Hilbert space subspaces) with yes-no devices (i.e., orthogonal projections) they are tested by, in the unsharp case this identification is broken down: every quantum generalized proposition (i.e., pair of mutually orthogonal subspaces) is tested by many different yes-no devices (i.e., Hilbert space effects). The set of all quantum effects has a structure of Brouwer-Zadeh poset, canonically embeddable in a (minimal) Brouwer-Zadeh lattice, whereas the set of all quantum generalized propositions has a structure of Brouwer-Zadeh complete lattice.A Brouwer-Zadeh poset is defined as a partially ordered structure equipped with two nonusual orthocomplementations: a regular degenerate (Zadeh or fuzzy-like) one and a weak (Brouwer or intuitionistic-like) one linked by an interconnection rule. Using these two orthocomplementations it is possible to introduce the two modal-like operators of necessity and possibility.     

Operator structure of a nonquantum and nonclassical system

There exists a connection between the vectors of the Poincaré-sphere and the elements of the complex Hilbert space C². This latter space is used to describe spin-1/2 measurements. We use this connection to study the intermediate cases of a more general spin-1/2 measurement model which has no representation in a Hilbert space. We construct the set of operators of this general model and investigate under which circumstances it is possible to define linear operators. Because no Hilbert space structure is possible for these intermediate cases, it can be expected that no linear operators are possible and it is shown that under very plausible assumptions this is indeed the case.     

Importance of reversibility in the quantum formalism

In this Letter I stress the role of causal reversibility (time symmetry), together with causality and locality, in the justification of the quantum formalism. First, in the algebraic quantum formalism, I show that the assumption of reversibility implies that the observables of a quantum theory form an abstract real C^{?} algebra, and can be represented as an algebra of operators on a real Hilbert space. Second, in the quantum logic formalism, I emphasize which axioms for the lattice of propositions (the existence of an orthocomplementation and the covering property) derive from reversibility. A new argument based on locality and Soler's theorem is used to derive the representation as projectors on a regular Hilbert space from the general quantum logic formalism. In both cases it is recalled that the restriction to complex algebras and Hilbert spaces comes from the constraints of locality and separability.     

The role of the modular pairs in the category of complete orthomodular lattice

We study the modular pairs of a complete orthomodular lattice i.e. a CROC. We propose the concept ofm-morphism as a mapping which preserves the lattice structure, the orthogonality and the property to be a modular pair. We give a characterization of them-morphisms in the case of the complex Hilbert space to justify this concept.     

Operational foundation of quantum logic

The logic of quantum mechanical propositions—called quantum logic—is constructed on the basis of the operational foundation of logic. Some obvious modifications of the operational method, which come from the incommensurability of the quantum mechanical propositions, lead to the effective quantum logic. It is shown in this paper that in the framework of a calculization of this effective quantum logic the negation of a proposition is uniquely defined (Theorem I), and that a weak form of the quasimodular law can be derived (Theorem II). Taking account of the definiteness of truth values for quantum mechanical propositions, the calculus of full quantum logic can be derived (Theorem III). This calculus represents an orthocomplemented quasimodular lattice which has as a model the lattice of subspaces of Hilbert space.     

Three-point phase,symplectic measure,and Berry phase

It is shown that the geometric phase (Berry phase) around a cycle in the complex projective space of pure states of a quantum mechanical system can be expressed in terms of an elementary three-point phase function which is the simplest manifestation of the complexity of the underlying Hilbert space. In terms of this three-point phase it is possible to construct a geometrically relevant phase function defined mod 4 on the cycles and closely related to the natural symplectic structure of the state space.     

Preselection with certainty of photons in a singlet state from a set of independent photons

It is shown that one canpreselect with certainty photons in the singlet state from a set of completely unpolarized and independent photons which did not in any way directly interact with each other-without in any way affecting them. The result is based on an experiment which puts together two unpolarized photons from two independent singlet pairs, making them interfere in the fourth order at a beam splitter so as to preselect the singlet state of the other two photons from the pairs, although no polarization measurement has been carried out on the photons coming out from the beam splitter. One can obtain the expectation value for the correlated state of the former two unpolarized photons in the Hilbert space and therefore write down the singlet state for them, but one apparently cannotinfer the state within the Hilbert space. This might suggest that the Hilbert space is not amaximal model for quantum measurements.     

Logicoalgebraic structures II. Supports in test spaces

Test spaces are mathematical structures that underlie quantum logics in much the same way that Hilbert space underlies standard quantum logic. In this paper, we give a coherent account of the basic theory of test spaces and show how they provide an infrastructure for the study of quantum logics. IfL is the quantum logic for a physical systemL, then a support inL may be interpreted as the set of all propositions that are possible whenL is in a certain state. We present an analog for test spaces of the notion of a quantum-logical support and launch a study of the classification of supports.     

Quantum Set Theory

The complete orthomodular lattice of closed subspaces of a Hilbert space is considered as the logic describing a quantum physical system, and called a quantum logic. G. Takeuti developed a quantum set theory based on the quantum logic. He showed that the real numbers defined in the quantum set theory represent observables in quantum physics. We formulate the quantum set theory by introducing a strong implication corresponding to the lattice order, and represent the basic concepts of quantum physics such as propositions, symmetries, and states in the quantum set theory.     

A Hilbert Space Realization of Nonlinear Quantum Mechanics as Classical Extension of Its Linear Counterpart

This paper studies the state-effect-probability structure associated with thequantum mechanics of nonlinear (homogeneous, in general nonadditive) operatorson a Hilbert space. Its aim is twofold: to provide a concrete representation ofthe features of nonlinear quantum mechanics on a Hilbert space, and to showthat the properties of the nonlinear version of quantum mechanics here describedhave the structure of a classical logic.     

Phase Space Bounds for Quantum Mechanics on a Compact Lie Group

Let K be a compact, connected Lie group and its complexification. I consider the Hilbert space of holomorphic functions introduced in [H1], where the parameter t is to be interpreted as Planck's constant. In light of [L-S], the complex group may be identified canonically with the cotangent bundle of K. Using this identification I associate to each a “phase space probability density”. The main result of this paper is Theorem 1, which provides an upper bound on this density which holds uniformly over all F and all points in phase space. Specifically, the phase space probability density is at most , where and a _t is a constant which tends to one exponentially fast as t tends to zero. At least for small t, this bound cannot be significantly improved. With t regarded as Planck's constant, the quantity is precisely what is expected on physical grounds. Theorem 1 should be interpreted as a form of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle for K, that is, a limit on the concentration of states in phase space. The theorem supports the interpretation of the Hilbert space as the phase space representation of quantum mechanics for a particle with configuration space K. The phase space bound is deduced from very sharp pointwise bounds on functions in (Theorem 2). The proofs rely on precise calculations involving the heat kernel on K and the heat kernel on . Received: 9 July 1996/Accepted: 9 September 1996     

Realization of the three-dimensional quantum Euclidean space by differential operators

The three-dimensional quantum Euclidean space is an example of a non-commutative space that is obtained from Euclidean space by q-deformation. Simultaneously, angular momentum is deformed to , it acts on the q-Euclidean space that becomes a -module algebra this way. In this paper it is shown, that this algebra can be realized by differential operators acting on functions on . On a factorspace of a scalar product can be defined that leads to a Hilbert space, such that the action of the differential operators is defined on a dense set in this Hilbert space and algebraically self-adjoint becomes self-adjoint for the linear operator in the Hilbert space. The self-adjoint coordinates have discrete eigenvalues, the spectrum can be considered as a q-lattice. Received: 27 June 2000 / Published online: 9 August 2000     

Fermi-Dirac quantization of linear systems

After discussing the Fermion analogues of classical mechanics, we show that in finite degrees of freedom, the Segal-Weinless construction of the vacuum representation is always possible. This amounts to an explicit construction of a complex structure J which extends real Euclidean space with orthogonal dynamics to a complex Hilbert space with unitary dynamics. Also, we solve the inverse problem, deducing the class of classical Hamiltonians, given the complex structure J.     

Semiclassical states in loop quantum gravity: an introduction

Unifying general relativity and quantum mechanics is a great challenge left to us by Einstein. To face this challenge, considerable progress has been made in non-perturbative canonical (loop) quantum gravity during the past 20 years. The kinematical Hilbert space of the quantum theory is constructed rigorously. However, the semiclassical analysis of the theory is still a crucial and open issue. In this review, we first introduce our work on constructing a semiclassical weave state, using the [ω] operator on the kinematical Hilbert space of loop quantum gravity. Then we give an introduction to the two different approaches currently investigated for constructing coherent states in the kinematical Hilbert space. The current status of semiclassical analysis in loop quantum gravity is then summarized.     

Axiomatic foundations of quantum physics: Critiques and misunderstandings. Piron's question-proposition system

Some of the most frequent misconceptions about axiomatic quantum physics are discussed with the aim of clarifying their true significance, taking Piron's approach as conceptual framework. In particular, we deal with the following topics: the wrong identification of Piron's questions and Mackey's questions, and some curious alleged empirical consequences; the role of propositions as suitable equivalence classes of questions, their partial order structure, and the paradoxical consequences of the erroneous assignment to questions of some lattice properties involving propositions; the logical and the empirical purport of some negative theorems; the standard Hilbert space model of the theory and the consequent metaphysical disasters related to some identifications, which are peculiar of this model. A controversy between Foulis-Piron-Randall and Hadjisavvas-Thieffine-Mugur-Schächter is analyzed on the basis of the proposed Hilbert space model (in which Piron's questions are realized by Hilbertian effects, i.e., linear bounded operatorsF such that which clarify the different point of views. As an example, we treat the unsharp localization operators inL ₂().     

Amplification of Belinfante's argument for the nonexistence of dispersion-free states

A corollary of Gleason's theorem asserts that if the lattice of propositions of a physical system is isomorphic to the lattice of subspaces of a Hilbert space of dimension greater than two, then there is no probability measure that assigns only the values 1 and 0 (truth and falsity, respectively) to each of the propositions. Belinfante outlined an elegant geometrical proof of this corollary but relied upon an unrigorous measure-theoretical statement. An amplified geometrical proof is given along Belinfante's lines, but dispensing with measure theory.     

Generalized Effect Algebras of Positive Operators Densely Defined on Hilbert Spaces

Axioms of quantum structures, motivated by properties of some sets of linear operators in Hilbert spaces are studied. Namely, we consider examples of sets of positive linear operators defined on a dense linear subspace D in a (complex) Hilbert space ℋ. Some of these operators may have a physical meaning in quantum mechanics. We prove that the set of all positive linear operators with fixed such D and ℋ form a generalized effect algebra with respect to the usual addition of operators. Some sub-algebras are also mentioned. Moreover, on a set of all positive linear operators densely defined in an infinite dimensional complex Hilbert space, the partial binary operation is defined making this set a generalized effect algebra.     

Quantum theory as a theory in a classical propositional calculus

Classical logic and Boolean algebras are, of course, very intimately related. It is, however, possible to show that lattices of propositions isomorphic to the lattice of all the closed subspaces of a separable Hilbert space arise quite naturally within the classical propositional logic. This was first shown by the author in 1987 in connection with a certain type of theories calledtheories with orthocomplementation. These theories are not easy to interpret physically and it is shown that simpler theories, which are more amenable to physical interpretation, can also be used. It is then possible to assume that quantum theory is such a theory and, as a result, to formulate a new approach that provides a way of looking at the wave-particle duality and touches upon the foundations of quantum field theory.