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Arkady Bolotin

Publications and source records attributed to Arkady Bolotin.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

The problem of dispersion-free probabilities in Gleason-type theorems for a two-dimensional Hilbert space

As it is known, Gleason's theorem is not applicable for a two-dimensional Hilbert space since in this situation Gleason's axioms are not strong enough to imply Born's rule thus leaving room for a dispersion-free probability measure i.e., one that has only values 0 and 1. To strengthen Gleason's axioms one must add at least one more assumption. But, as it is argued in the present paper, alternatively one can give up the lattice condition lying in the foundation of Gleason's theorem. Particularly, the lattice structure based on the closed linear subspaces in the Hilbert space could be weakened by the requirement for the meet operation to exist only for the subspaces belonging to commutable projection operators. The paper demonstrates that this weakening can resolve the problem of the dispersion-free probability measure in the case of a qubit.

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Classical limit of quantum propositions

Contrary to classical semantics, the disjunction of two experimental propositions relating to pure states of a quantum system ("quantum propositions" for short) can be true even in the case where neither disjunct is true. This suggests that in such case either both disjuncts are false and so the distributive laws are not applicable to quantum propositions (this inference is accepted in quantum logic) or the disjuncts are not bivalent, i.e., neither true nor false, therefore the principle of bivalence is not applicable to quantum propositions. But, to accept the latter inference, one must explain how quantum propositions become bivalent in the classical limit. This paper shows the emergence of bivalence through the interaction between a quantum system and its environment and compares the environmentally induced bivalence with the classical limit of quantum logic.

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Admissibility of truth assignments for quantum propositions in supervaluational logic

The structure of a complete lattice formed by closed linear subspaces of a Hilbert space (i.e., a Hilbert lattice) entails some unreasonable consequences from the physical point of view. Specifically, this structure seems to contradict to the localized variant of the Kochen-Specker theorem according to which the bivaluation of a proposition represented by a closed linear subspace that does not belong to a Boolean algebra shared by the state, in which a quantum-mechanical system is prepared, must be value indefinite. For this reason, the Hilbert lattice structure seems to be too strong and needs to be weakened. The question is, how should it be weakened so that to support the quantum uncertainty principle and the Kochen-Specker theorem? Which logic will a weakened structure identify? The present paper tries to answer these questions.

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Quantum contextuality implies a logic that does not obey the principle of bivalence

In the paper, a value assignment for projection operators relating to a quantum system is equated with assignment of truth-values to the propositions associated with these operators. In consequence, the Kochen-Specker theorem (its localized variant, to be exact) can be treated as the statement that a logic of those projection operators does not obey the principle of bivalence. This implies that such a logic has a gappy (partial) semantics or many-valued semantics.

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Do quantum propositions obey the principle of excluded middle?

The present paper demonstrates the failure of the principle of excluded middle (PEM) in the lattice of all closed linear subspaces of a Hilbert space (usually defined as quantum logic). Namely, it is shown that for a qubit, a proposition and its negation can be both false. Since PEM is the assumed theorem of quantum logic, this raises the question: If PEM holds in the orthocomplemented lattice of all propositions of the quantum system, then how the failure of PEM in quantum logic can be explained? Alternatively, if the propositions relating to the quantum system do not obey PEM, then what is the semantics of those propositions? Possible answers to these questions are analyzed in the present paper.

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The assumption of the Hilbert lattice in the case of a two-dimensional system

As it is known, the set of all closed linear subspaces of a Hilbert space together with a binary relation over the set represents the logic of the quantum propositions. It is also known that the lattices of the closed linear subspaces on a Hilbert space of dimension 3 or greater do not have a prime filter, hence those lattices do not allow a valuation map. In contrast to that, for qubits it is easy to find prime filters in the Hilbert lattice. This begs the question: What assumption(s) related to the lattices of the closed linear subspaces should be added or altered to preclude the bivaluation map in the two-dimensional case? The presented paper offers the answer to this question.

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Hardy's paradox according to non-classical semantics

In the paper, using the language of spin-half particles, Hardy's paradox is examined within different semantics: a partial one, a many-valued one, and one defined as a set of weak values of projection operators. As it is shown in this paper, any of such non-classical semantics can resolve Hardy's paradox.

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The meet of incommutable projection operators contradicts Burnside's theorem

In contrast to conjunctions of commutable projection operators unambiguously represented by their meets, the mathematical representation of conjunctions of incommutable projection operators is a question that has yet to be solved. This question relates to another asking whether the set of the column spaces of the projection operators, commutable and incommutable alike, forms a lattice. As it is demonstrated in the paper, if the Hilbert space is finite, the column spaces of the incommutable projection operators cannot be elements of one partially ordered set in accordance with Burnside's theorem on matrix algebras.

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Truth values of quantum phenomena

In the paper, the idea of describing not-yet-verified properties of quantum objects with logical many-valuedness is scrutinized. As it is argued, to promote such an idea, the following two foundational problems of many-valued quantum logic must be decided: the problem of choosing a proper system of many-valued logic and the problem of the emergence of bivalence from logical many-valuedness. Difficulties accompanying solutions of these problems are discussed.

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Contextuality and the fundamental theorem of noncommutative algebra

In the paper it is shown that the Kochen-Specker theorem follows from Burnside's theorem on noncommutative algebras. Accordingly, contextuality (as an impossibility of assigning binary values to projection operators independently of their contexts) is merely an inference from Burnside's fundamental theorem of the algebra of linear transformations on a Hilbert space of finite dimension.

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The quantum pigeonhole principle as a violation of the principle of bivalence

In the paper, it is argued that the phenomenon known as the quantum pigeonhole principle (namely, three quantum particles are put in two boxes, yet no two particles are in the same box) can be explained not as a violation of Dirichlet's box principle in the case of quantum particles but as a nonvalidness of a bivalent logic for describing not-yet verified propositions relating to quantum mechanical experiments.

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Quantum supervaluationist account of the EPR paradox

In the paper, the EPR paradox is explored by the approach of quantum supervaluationism that leads to a "gappy" semantics with the propositions giving rise to truth-value gaps. Within this approach, the statement, which asserts that in the singlet state the system of two (i.e., A and B) spin-1/2 particles possesses the a priori property "spin A is up and spin B is down along the same axis" or "spin A is down and spin B is up along the same axis", does not have the truth-value at all. Consequently, after the verification of, say, the proposition "spin A is up along the z-axis", the statistical population describing the valuation of the logical connective "spin B is down along the z-axis and spin B is up (down) along the x-axis" would have no elements.

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Quantum Supervaluationism

As it is known, neither classical logical conjunction "and" nor classical logical alternative "either...or" can replace "+" representing a linear superposition of two quantum states. Therefore, to provide a logical account of the quantum superposition, one must either reconsider the standard interpretation of quantum mechanics (making it fit for classical bivalent logic) or replace the standard logic with a deviant logic suitable for describing the superposition. In the paper, a supervaluation approach to the description of the quantum superposition is considered. In accordance with this approach, the indefinite propositions, which correspond to the superposition states, lack truth-values of any kind even granting that their compounds (such as logical alternative "either...or") can have truth-values. As an illustration, the supervaluationist account of the superposition of spin states is presented.

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The relation between the Kochen-Specker theorem and bivalence

In the paper it is argued that the Kochen-Specker theorem necessitates a conclusion that for a quantum system it is possible to find a set of projection operators which is not truth-value bivalent; that is, a bivalent truth-value assignment function imposed on such a set cannot be total. This means that at least one proposition associated with the said set must be neither true nor false.

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Contextuality and truth-value assignment

In the paper, the question whether truth values can be assigned to the propositions before their verification is discussed. To answer this question, a notion of a propositionally noncontextual theory is introduced that in order to explain the verification outcomes provides a map linking each element of a complete lattice identified with a proposition to a truth value. The paper demonstrates that no model obeying such a theory and at the same time the principle of bivalence can be consistent with the occurrence of a non-vanishing "two-path" quantum interference term and the quantum collapse postulate.

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Quantum probabilities and the Born rule in the intuitionistic interpretation of quantum mechanics

This paper presents a novel explanation of the cause of quantum probabilities and the Born rule based on the intuitionistic interpretation of quantum mechanics where propositions obey constructive (intuitionistic) logic. The use of constructive logic makes it possible (through a replacement of the concept of truth with the concept of constructive probability) to abandon the law of excluded middle in the intuitionistic interpretation.

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On the ongoing experiments looking for higher-order interference: What are they really testing?

The existence of higher than pairwise quantum interference in the set-up, in which there are more than two slits, is currently under experimental investigation. However, it is still unclear what the confirmation of existence of such interference would mean for quantum theory -- whether that usual quantum mechanics is merely a limiting case of some more general theory or whether that some assumption of quantum theory taken as a fundamental one does not actually hold true. The present paper tries to understand why quantum theory is limited only to a certain kind of interference.

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Intuitionistic interpretation of quantum mechanics

In the present paper, the decision problem of the Schrödinger equation (asking whether or not a given Hamiltonian operator has the nonempty solution set) is represented as a logical statement. As it is shown in the paper, the law of excluded middle would be applicable to the introduced statement if and only if quantum fundamentalism (asserting that everything in the universe is ultimately describable in quantum-mechanical terms) held. But, since the decision problem of the Schrödinger equation is in general undecidable, such a statement is allowed to be other than true or false, explicitly, it may fail to have truth values at all. This makes possible to abandon the law of excluded middle together with quantum fundamentalism in the proposed intuitionistic interpretation of quantum mechanics.

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