Do we know for sure if gravity exists in quantum states?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the existence of gravity in quantum states, exploring the potential contradictions between quantum mechanics (QM) and gravitational effects. Participants examine whether gravity can be considered as an emergent property in quantum systems, particularly in relation to decoherence and entanglement. The conversation includes theoretical implications and experimental observations related to quantum gravity.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that if quantum states are represented by abstract statistics, gravity might also be subjective until decoherence occurs.
  • Others argue that classical gravity couples to quantum states, citing examples like the gravitational redshift of photons measured via the Mössbauer effect.
  • A participant questions the validity of redshift as proof of gravity at the quantum scale, arguing it involves measuring light, thus disturbing the quantum state.
  • There is a discussion about the meaning of "gravity in an undisturbed quantum state," with some asserting that any quantum state interacts with a gravitational field.
  • One participant mentions a paper proposing that gravity is a macroscopic emergent property from quantum information, suggesting gravity does not exist prior to decoherence.
  • Concerns are raised about the speculative nature of integrating quantum mechanics and gravity, with some participants asserting that various approaches to quantum gravity have not succeeded.
  • Another participant counters that current approaches to quantum gravity can make predictions subject to experimental tests and highlight potential successes in resolving singularities and explaining inflation.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express multiple competing views regarding the relationship between gravity and quantum states, with no consensus reached on whether gravity exists in undisturbed quantum states or the validity of various quantum gravity theories.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the speculative nature of some claims, the dependence on definitions of quantum states and gravity, and unresolved mathematical steps in the discussion of quantum gravity theories.

  • #31
tom.stoer said:
To which indications are you referring to?
I think that a theory of holography with "boundary Hilbert spaces" seems to be a promising framework.

This again boils down to our disagreement about structural realism, so I expect that if you are self-consistent you should not accept the following arguments :) but anyways (sorry for the lenght, but it's not possible to condense more).

As there are not much experimental feedback here, the indications I see are piling up are from analysis of constructing principles and a general understanding of scientific knowledge evolves. Thus the question I ask is not if timeless observer invariant statespaces are correct or wrong, I merely ask wether it's a rational expectation for further research. For me it's not so. But this doesn't mean that I exclude the possibility.

There is no a priori mathematical problem with picturing observer invariant and timeless state spaces in cases where the set of observers can be described. The problem is to identify these mathematical structures, if we believe they exists, which again brings us back to methodology.

One problem I see is when you consider the scientific perspective how how to defend your expectations, and theories, and the process where you rationally would infer these structures. In the structural realism view, you don't demand this. Then any "mathematical existence" of timeless eternal true structures is accepted. I don't think these structures are impossible, but I think that the endavour of trying to find them is irrational. As you in any case would have to face the question of what structure, and why.

As I see it, the abstractions vectors and hilbert spaces, represent the information and the possible information states. And if we demand motivation for also the possibilities, then they are more or less "spanned" by the history of states; directly or indirectly by related information; but I have a hard time to see how a finite observer can encode an infinite history, not to mention that such a process would take infinite time. So it seems the constraints of finite information, and finite computations only yields a "window" of the set of possibilities. And from the inside view, there possible larger set of possibilities where we only see a window is not known. So any theories formulated from the inside will be bound to "live on" this evolving hilbert space. Moreoever it seems reasonable to think that each information processing agent will have a different window. This is in particularly clear when you consider a relatively speaking "simple observer" in a compelx environment; such as elementary particle vs lab environment, vs human vs entire universe.

Then reason to expect thta the observer invariant and start hilbert spaces does in fact work reasonably well when it comes to particle physics is that the observer is really the human laboratory, which is NOT "simple" relative in terms of complexity relative to the atom. Because we humans observer, these mini-observers interacting with each other. But the objection does become relevant if we try to understand the GUT models, ie. why the action between particles are what they are.

The objection is analogous to the ergodic hypothesis problem in classical physics - how do you INFER the equiprobable state space, in a real process in finite time? A structural realist is not worried about the inferrability constraint, but I am. My conclusion is that the inference of the statespce, is constrained to a complexity window, and therefor ongoing and we can never KNOW wether our "ergodic hypothesis" is right. The ergodic hypothesis is rather simply a basis for placing your bets.

This is why I think that the action of any observer, is "as if" it's distinguishable state/hilbert space, was fixed. But if it isn't (which it often isn't) the observer will face a backreaction, and sometimes this can be adjusted by a unitary correction, but sometimes it cna't, since there is no consistent correction withing the hilbert space, and thus recovering consistency requires the hilbert space to deform. But the point here is that this does not always happen. There are cases where the interactions simply work fine withing the fixed hilbert spaces. For me this is a kind of equilibrium scenario. Now to assume this from start, is to assume a certain kind of equilibrium, and given this analysis about as rational as Einsteins original expectation that the universe should be static.

Most ways around this, just tries to consider a LARGER hilber space, where the prior one evolves (again unitarlity) but anyone that accepts my arguments sees that this is nto a solution as the size of the hilber space is constrained the by observers complexity. The larger and larger and ultimately infinitely large spaces violated the entire inference and complexity constraints (which I consider to be founding of an intriinsic mesurement theory) and again we're back to structural realism, which I ultimately consider to be a non-scientific stance.

In this view, QM as we know it, with fixed hilbert space is a measurement theory that is extrinsic and that lacks the information constraint condition, and assume infinite time to equuilibrate hte hilbert spaces. And the environment is assumed to be an infinite information sink. This in fact does make sense when we do study small subsystems (like we DO in in particle physics). This is a similar point Smolin also made.

This is one of the "indications" I see as to why QM as we know it, is a special limiting case of the correct inference theory I seek.

But clearly the proper inference theory I seek, will be really weird compare to QM. Those who had problems giving up on classical realism to accept the partial step of current QM, will IMO also have to have to give up structural realism which is far more radical.

/Fredrik
 
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  • #32
tom.stoer said:
To which term do you refer to? Quantum gravity?

I do refer to a specific approach, but there is a rather general reason that something like quantum gravity MUST exist. Einstein's equation (formally) read

G = T

where G[g] is the spacetime and T are all other fields; T must be quantized whereas for G no such quantization is well established up to know. But we know that

G = <T>

is inconsistent, therefore some theory of quantum gravity MUST exist. Individual approaches may be speculative, but not the general idea.

This argument can also be read as a proof that T cannot be quantized in a fundamental theory and that quantization is a secondary effect relevant only for certain interactions.
 
  • #33
emlbiltek said:
Quantum gravity is seen in "gravitational red-shift" effects. This state is proven whit a lot of theoretical and experimental works.

It's GR not QG, it's the result of continuous spacetime curvature.
 

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