Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm
Time is one of the undisputed foundations of our life in the real world. Here it is argued that inside small isolated quantum systems, time does not pass as we are used to, and it is primarily in this sense that quantum objects enjoy only limited reality. Quantum systems, which we know, are embedded...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Entropy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/23/6/772 |
| _version_ | 1797529640881881088 |
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| author | Knud Thomsen |
| author_facet | Knud Thomsen |
| author_sort | Knud Thomsen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Time is one of the undisputed foundations of our life in the real world. Here it is argued that inside small isolated quantum systems, time does not pass as we are used to, and it is primarily in this sense that quantum objects enjoy only limited reality. Quantum systems, which we know, are embedded in the everyday classical world. Their preparation as well as their measurement-phases leave durable records and traces in the entropy of the environment. The Landauer Principle then gives a quantitative threshold for irreversibility. With double slit experiments and tunneling as paradigmatic examples, it is proposed that a label of timelessness offers clues for rendering a Copenhagen-type interpretation of quantum physics more “realistic” and acceptable by providing a coarse but viable link from the fundamental quantum realm to the classical world which humans directly experience. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:16:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7da9a9a1aff6420c98efcb219324562c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1099-4300 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T10:16:38Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Entropy |
| spelling | doaj.art-7da9a9a1aff6420c98efcb219324562c2023-11-22T00:47:17ZengMDPI AGEntropy1099-43002021-06-0123677210.3390/e23060772Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum RealmKnud Thomsen0Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), 5232 Villigen, SwitzerlandTime is one of the undisputed foundations of our life in the real world. Here it is argued that inside small isolated quantum systems, time does not pass as we are used to, and it is primarily in this sense that quantum objects enjoy only limited reality. Quantum systems, which we know, are embedded in the everyday classical world. Their preparation as well as their measurement-phases leave durable records and traces in the entropy of the environment. The Landauer Principle then gives a quantitative threshold for irreversibility. With double slit experiments and tunneling as paradigmatic examples, it is proposed that a label of timelessness offers clues for rendering a Copenhagen-type interpretation of quantum physics more “realistic” and acceptable by providing a coarse but viable link from the fundamental quantum realm to the classical world which humans directly experience.https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/23/6/772relational timetimelessnessrecordscausality in 1 real worldinterpretationsBig Bang |
| spellingShingle | Knud Thomsen Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm Entropy relational time timelessness records causality in 1 real world interpretations Big Bang |
| title | Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm |
| title_full | Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm |
| title_fullStr | Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm |
| title_full_unstemmed | Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm |
| title_short | Timelessness Strictly inside the Quantum Realm |
| title_sort | timelessness strictly inside the quantum realm |
| topic | relational time timelessness records causality in 1 real world interpretations Big Bang |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1099-4300/23/6/772 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT knudthomsen timelessnessstrictlyinsidethequantumrealm |