The union of physics and information
Year: 2002
Type: preprint
Abstract: A union of quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and information theory is presented. It is accomplished by reinterpreting the mathematical formalism of Everett’s many-worlds theory of quantum mechanics and augmenting it to include preparation according to a given ensemble. The notion of directed entanglement is introduced through which both classical and quantum communication over quantum channels are reduced to entanglement transfer. The paradox of constant thermodynamic entropy in a closed quantum system is resolved. The view taken in this Letter is that the totality of conceptual experience can be described in terms of correlated random variables. This will allow us to make contact with Shannon’s information theory [1] in which random variables are the carriers of information. Two protagonists sharing the same physical world is no more than classical correlations between the states of their knowledge regarding that world. Similarly, the observation of definite physical laws is no more than classical correlations between states of knowledge regarding two consecutive acts of measurement, or preparation and measurement, depending on the experiment. For instance, a ball kicked by Alice seen as obeying Newton’s deterministic laws of motion is merely a statement about the correlation
Source: arXiv (Cornell University)
Authors: Igor Devetak, Anne Staples
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2184733405