Entanglement on the Many Worlds model

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the relationship between entanglement and the Many Worlds Interpretation (MWI) of quantum mechanics, particularly focusing on the implications of non-locality and wave function collapse. Participants explore whether MWI accommodates entanglement without invoking collapse and how it addresses the concept of 'spooky action at a distance'.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants assert that entanglement's non-locality is tied to the instantaneous collapse of the wave function, questioning if MWI, which lacks collapse, also lacks entanglement.
  • Others argue that entanglement does not depend on wave function collapse, suggesting that both MWI and collapse interpretations can accommodate entanglement based on the wave function's form.
  • One participant emphasizes that while entanglement itself is independent of collapse, the phenomenon often referred to as 'spooky action at a distance' does depend on it, raising questions about MWI's explanation of this phenomenon.
  • Another participant clarifies that MWI can describe the effects typically associated with 'spooky action at a distance' without requiring collapse, proposing that MWI maintains a superposition of states rather than a definitive collapse to a single outcome.
  • A later reply states that MWI does not involve 'spooky action at a distance', but also notes that it does not imply locality, suggesting a different understanding of local objects in the context of MWI.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus; multiple competing views remain regarding the relationship between entanglement, wave function collapse, and the implications of MWI.

Contextual Notes

Participants express differing interpretations of the implications of MWI on entanglement and non-locality, with some relying on specific definitions of locality and collapse that remain unresolved in the discussion.

jeremyfiennes
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TL;DR
Entanglement's non-locality depends on the collapse of the common wave function. The Many Worlds model has no collapse. Does it also have no entanglement?
Entanglement's non-locality ('spooky action at a distance') depends on the instantaneous collapse at all points in space of the entangled particles' common wave function. The Many Worlds model has no wave function collapse. Does it also have no entanglement?
 
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Your premise is wrong: entanglement does not depend on collapse.

If the wave function takes on a certain form, we have entanglement; MWI and collapse both work just fine on that wave function.
 
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Entanglement itself doesn't depend on collapse. But 'spooky action at a distance' does. That is my query: how does MWI account for this?
 
jeremyfiennes said:
Entanglement itself doesn't depend on collapse. But 'spooky action at a distance' does.
The phenomenon that people sometimes (and, in the modern view, inaccurately) describe as “spooky action at a distance” does not depend on collapse.

You can choose to describe it in terms of collapse, but it is not necessary - MWI describes it just fine without collapse. A collapse interpretation says that we start with a superposition of “A up B down” and “A down B up” and the interaction with either measuring device changes the state to either “A up, A measuring device reads up, B down, B measuring device reads down” or “A down, A measuring device reads down, B up, B measuring device reads up”. MWI says that the interaction with either measuring device changes the state to a superposition of those two states, only one of which will be observed.
 
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Ok. Thanks.
 
MWI does not have a spooky action at a distance. But it does not mean that MWI is local. MWI is alocal in the sense that, at the fundamental level, local objects (namely objects defined on a spacetime point) don't even exist.
 
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