B Quantum Decoherence: What Happens to Other Outcomes?

[Question69]

What happens to the other possible outcomes after decoherence has been finalized? Where do they go?

 

[Nugatory]

What happens to the other possible outcomes after decoherence has been finalized? Where do they go?

This is basically the measurement problem: The mathematical formalism gives us the probabilities of the various outcomes, but doesn't say anything about how we end up with a single outcome.

The answer will be different for different interpretations, and if any of the answers were completely satisfactory people wouldn't have argued about this for the past century.

 

[Question69]

This is basically the measurement problem: The mathematical formalism gives us the probabilities of the various outcomes, but doesn't say anything about how we end up with a single outcome.

The answer will be different for different interpretations, and if any of the answers were completely satisfactory people wouldn't have argued about this for the past century.

right, but decoherence is mainly used in non-collapse foundations of QM no? So, if that's the case, since the unitary evolution is preserved, what happens to the other entangled superpositions?

 

[PeterDonis]

decoherence is mainly used in non-collapse foundations of QM no?

Decoherence is not part of any particular interpretation of QM. It's a consequence of the basic math of QM.

 

[Question69]

Decoherence is not part of any particular interpretation of QM. It's a consequence of the basic math of QM.

Yes, that's what I said what happens in the bare-bone version of this, not coupled with any other interpretation.

 

[PeterDonis]

what happens in the bare-bone version of this, not coupled with any other interpretation.

Decoherence.

There is no other answer if you want to stay independent of any interpretation. "Decoherence" is all the basic math of QM can tell you.

 

[Question69]

Hmm, but still, what happens with the other entangled systems?

 

[PeterDonis]

what happens with the other entangled systems?

What "other entangled systems"? Entanglement does not duplicate systems. It just means the individual subsystems don't have definite states, only the joint entangled system does. There is still only one of each subsystem.