PIRSA:10120055 Conference Quantum Foundations

DOI10.48660/10120055

Conference/School: PIAF Workshop Brisbane - 2010

(2010). Protective Measurement and the Interpretation of the Wave Function. Perimeter Institute. https://pirsa.org/10120055

Protective Measurement and the Interpretation of the Wave Function. Perimeter Institute, Dec. 01, 2010, https://pirsa.org/10120055 

@misc{ pirsa_PIRSA:10120055,
  doi = {10.48660/10120055},
  url = {https://pirsa.org/10120055},
  author = {},
  keywords = {Quantum Foundations},
  language = {en},
  title = {Protective Measurement and the Interpretation of the Wave Function},
  publisher = {Perimeter Institute},
  year = {2010},
  month = {dec},
  note = {PIRSA:10120055 see, \url{https://pirsa.org}}
}

Abstract

Shan Gao We investigate the validity of the field explanation of the wave function by analyzing the mass and charge density distributions of a quantum system. According to protective measurement, a charged quantum system has effective mass and charge density distributed in space, proportional to the square of the absolute value of its wave function. If the wave function is a description of a physical field, then the mass and charge density will be distributed in space simultaneously for a charged quantum system, and thus there will exist a remarkable electrostatic self-interaction of its wave function, though the gravitational self-interaction is too weak to be detected presently. This not only violates the superposition principle of quantum mechanics but also contradicts experimental observations.

Resources

Next talk

Related Talks