Arwa Bukhari | Searcharxiv

arXiv2026

Quantum mechanics in configuration space in context

To enhance the way in which wave-particle duality is implemented in the modelling of quantum mechanical systems, Bukhari et al. [New J. Phys. 27, 084501 (2025)] recently introduced an alternative approach to quantum mechanics, namely quantum mechanics in configuration space. This formalism is based on a physically motivated quantisation of Newtonian mechanics and promotes the classical position-velocity states (x,v) to pairwise distinguishable quantum states. The resulting |x,v> states form the basis of the Hilbert space of individual quantum mechanical particles and evolve along classical trajectories. In this paper, we consider the modelling of a mechanical particle in free space and put quantum mechanics in configuration space into context. It is shown that this formalism increases the continuity between quantum and classical mechanics by avoiding a conceptual inconsistency associated with the definition of momentum in canonical quantisation. In addition, we emphasise that standard quantum mechanics and quantum mechanics in configuration space are based on two distinct formulations of classical mechanics.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Enhancing wave-particle duality

To enhance the consistency between the quantum descriptions of waves and particles, we quantise mechanical point particles in this paper in the same physically-motivated way as we previously quantised light in quantum electrodynamics [Bennett et al., Eur. J. Phys. 37, 014001 (2016)]. To identify the relevant Hilbert space, we notice that mechanical particles can occupy any position x while moving at any velocity v. Afterwards, we promote the classical states (x,v) to pairwise orthogonal quantum states |x,v> and demand that these evolve according to Newton's equations of motion. The resulting quantum theory is mass-independent, when Newton's equations of motion are mass-independent, as one would expect. The basic formulation of quantum mechanics emerges from quantum mechanics in configuration space as a semi-classical approximation when a fixed mass is imposed and several other adjustments are made.

quant-ph↗