Foundations of quantum mechanics: decoherence and interpretation

TL;DR

This paper reviews Castagnino's work on quantum decoherence and the modal-Hamiltonian interpretation, clarifying foundational issues and proposing a coherent ontological framework for quantum mechanics.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive framework for quantum decoherence in closed systems and advocates the modal-Hamiltonian interpretation as a solution to interpretive problems.

Findings

Decoherence framework clarifies quantum phenomena in closed systems

Modal-Hamiltonian interpretation addresses key interpretive issues

Ontological model provides a philosophical understanding of quantum reference

Abstract

In this paper we review Castagnino's contributions to the foundations of quantum mechanics. First, we recall his work on quantum decoherence in closed systems, and the proposal of a general framework for decoherence from which the phenomenon acquires a conceptually clear meaning. Then, we introduce his contribution to the hard field of the interpretation of quantum mechanics: the modal-Hamiltonian interpretation solves many of the interpretive problems of the theory, and manifests its physical relevance in its application to many traditional models of the practice of physics. In the third part of this work we describe the ontological picture of the quantum world that emerges from the modal-Hamiltonian interpretation, stressing the philosophical step toward a deep understanding of the reference of the theory.