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Is Superluminal Signaling Possible in Collapse Theories of Quantum Mechanics?

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Abstract

It is a received view that superluminal signaling is prohibited in collapse theories of quantum mechanics. In this paper, I argue that this may be not the case. I propose two possible mechanisms of superluminal signaling in collapse theories. The first one is based on the well-accepted solution to the tails problem, and the second one is based on certain assumptions about the minds of observers. Finally, I also discuss how collapse theories can avoid such superluminal signaling.

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Notes

  1. Bob can also receive the superluminal signal by looking at the devices in his lab if his observation of the result of a device does not further collapse the entangled superposition of the device significantly so that the superposition is still a result “1” state with the tail being the result “0” state, namely immediately after Bob’s observation of the result of a device the state of the whole composite system including Bob is close to the state \(\sqrt{p_0}\left| 0\right\rangle _S\left| 0\right\rangle _M\left| 0\right\rangle _B+e^{i\phi }\sqrt{p_1}\left| 1\right\rangle _S\left| 1\right\rangle _M\left| 1\right\rangle _B\) or \(\sqrt{p_0}\left| 0\right\rangle _S\left| 0\right\rangle _M\left| 0\right\rangle _B-e^{i\phi }\sqrt{p_1}\left| 1\right\rangle _S\left| 1\right\rangle _M\left| 1\right\rangle _B\). In this case, if Alice does not make her measurements, Bob will observe the result “1” for all devices, while if Alice makes her measurements, Bob will observe the result “0” for some devices.

  2. This means that these two mechanisms of superluminal signaling are different from the mechanism of superluminal signaling in nonlinear quantum mechanics [2, 7, 8, 11]. Note also that such superluminal signaling is practically unrealizable due to either the extremely small tails or the extremely small possibility of the existence of general superpositions of different result states.

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  1. Research Center for Philosophy of Science and Technology, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, 030006, People’s Republic of China

    Shan Gao

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Gao, S. Is Superluminal Signaling Possible in Collapse Theories of Quantum Mechanics?. Found Phys 53, 87 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10701-023-00729-3

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