Delayed choice experiments: An analysis in forward time

TL;DR

This paper analyzes two delayed choice experiments, demonstrating that their outcomes can be fully explained by standard quantum mechanics without invoking future information, and shows their equivalence under time-order modifications.

Contribution

It provides a detailed, mathematical analysis proving that delayed choice experiments do not require future information and are equivalent under different time orderings.

Findings

Outcomes explained by textbook quantum mechanics

Delayed and non-delayed setups yield identical results

Experiments are operationally equivalent regardless of time ordering

Abstract

In this article, we present a detailed analysis of two famous delayed choice experiments: Wheeler's classic gedanken-experiment and the delayed quantum eraser. Our analysis shows that the outcomes of both experiments can be fully explained on the basis of the information collected during the experiments using textbook quantum mechanics only. At no point in the argument, information from the future is needed to explain what happens next. In fact, more is true: for both experiments, we show, in a strictly mathematical way, that a modified version in which the time-ordering of the steps is changed to avoid the delayed choice leads to exactly the same final state. In this operational sense, the scenarios are completely equivalent in terms of conclusions that can be drawn from their outcomes.