De Broglie relations, Gravitational time dilation and weak equivalence principle

TL;DR

This paper explores how quantum test wave packets in weakly curved spacetime follow free-fall motions consistent with classical geodesics, suggesting the weak equivalence principle may originate from quantum physics.

Contribution

It demonstrates that quantum free-fall motions can be derived from de Broglie relations without assuming specific Hamiltonians, linking quantum mechanics to gravitational equivalence.

Findings

Quantum test wave packets follow geodesic motion in weak gravity.

The weak equivalence principle may be rooted in quantum physics.

Quantum and classical free-fall motions are consistent.

Abstract

Interplays between quantum physics and gravity have long inspired exciting studies, which reveal subtle connections between quantum laws and the general notion of curved spacetime. One important example is the uniqueness of free-falling motions in both quantum and gravitational physics. In this work, we re-investigate the free-falling motions of quantum test wave packets that are distributed over weakly curved spacetime backgrounds. Except for the de Broglie relations, no assumption of priori given Hamiltonians or least actions satisfied by the quantum system is made. We find that the mean motions of quantum test wave packets can be deduced naturally from the de Broglie relations with a generalized treatment of gravitational time dilations in quantum waves. Such mean motions of quantum test masses in gravitational field are independent of their masses and compositions, and restore exactly the free-falling or geodesic motions of classical test masses in curved spacetime. This suggests a novel perspective that weak equivalence principle, which states the universality of free-fall, may be deeply rooted in quantum physics and be a phenomenon that has emerged from the quantum world.