Can the Quantum Measurement Problem be resolved within the framework of Schroedinger Dynamics and Quantum Probability?

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that within Schroedinger dynamics and quantum probability, the measurement problem can be resolved by modeling the measurement process as a large N interacting system, leading to wave packet reduction and definite outcomes.

Contribution

It provides a rigorous proof that the measurement problem can be addressed within standard quantum mechanics using macroscopic apparatus modeling and large deviation principles.

Findings

Wave packet reduction is achieved for large N

One-to-one correspondence between microsystem state and pointer position

Corrections decrease exponentially with N

Abstract

We provide an affirmative answer to the question posed in the title. Our argument is based on a treatment of the Schroedinger dynamics of the composite of a quantum microsystem, S, and a macroscopic measuring apparatus, I, consisting of N interacting particles. The pointer positions of this apparatus are represented by orthogonal subspaces of its representative Hilbert space that are simultaneous eigenspaces of coarse-grained macroscopic observables. By taking explicit account of their macroscopicality via a large deviation principle, we prove that, for a suitably designed apparatus I, the evolution of the composite (S+I) leads both to the reduction of the wave packet of S and to a one-to-one correspondence between the resultant state of this microsystem and the pointer position of I, up to utterly negligible corrections that decrease exponentially with N.