An Extreme Metastable Model for Quantum Measurement

TL;DR

This paper models quantum measurement as a metastable dynamical system, explaining how multi-peaked probability densities collapse into a single peak during observation, akin to a mouse trapped in one of two compartments.

Contribution

It introduces a novel metastable dynamical model to describe the collapse of multi-peaked quantum probability densities during measurement.

Findings

Multi-peaked densities can be modeled by a metastable system.

Observation causes the system to select a single-peaked density.

The model provides a theoretical explanation for wavefunction collapse.

Abstract

Quantum experiments are observed as probability density functions. We often encounter multi-peaked densities which we model in this paper by a metastable dynamical system. The dynamics can be regarded in a thought experiment where a mouse is in either one of two disjoint traps which possess little outlets. The mouse spends most of its time in one or the other trap, and once in awhile makes its way to the other trap. Hence, a bi-peaked density function. When the experiment is observed - such as a light shone on the traps - the mouse stays in one trap. This measurement process results in a single peaked density that, we prove, can be modelled by the metastable process selecting an extreme density function, which is single peaked.