Measurement As Spontaneous Symmetry Breaking, Non-locality and Non-Boolean Holism

TL;DR

This paper proposes that quantum measurements can be understood as spontaneous symmetry breaking among degenerate ground states, with non-Boolean holism providing a non-locality-free interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Contribution

It introduces a novel formulation of quantum mechanics where measurement is spontaneous symmetry breaking, avoiding non-locality through non-Boolean holism.

Findings

Degenerate ground states enable quantum measurement as symmetry breaking.

Measurements are induced by environmental perturbations causing symmetry breaking.

The formulation avoids non-locality by incorporating non-Boolean holism.

Abstract

It is shown that having degenerate ground states over the domain of the wavefunction of a system is a sufficient condition for a quantum system to act as a measuring apparatus for the system. Measurements are then instances of spontaneous symmetry breaking to one of these ground states, induced by environmental perturbations. Together with non-Boolean holism this constitutes an optimal formulation of quantum mechanics that does not imply non-locality.