Towards a dynamical theory of observation

TL;DR

This paper develops a dynamic, contextual model of classical and quantum observation using evolving apparatus and power set representations of detector states, applying it to key quantum experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a novel formalism combining contextuality and dynamical evolution for modeling observation in classical and quantum systems.

Findings

Model captures construction and decommissioning of detectors.

Describes signal dynamics and information extraction.

Applied to Elitzur-Vaidman and Hardy experiments.

Abstract

We introduce a model of classical and quantum observation based on contextuality and dynamically evolving apparatus. Power sets of classical bits model the four classical states of elementary detectors, viz. the two normal yes/no signal states, the faulty or decommissioned state and the non-existence state. Operators over power set registers are used to describe various physical scenarios such as the construction and decommissioning of physical devices in otherwise empty laboratories, the dynamics of signal states over those detectors, the extraction of information from those states, and multiple observers. We apply our quantum formalism to the Elitzur-Vaidman bomb-tester experiment and the Hardy paradox experiment.