Phase time and Ehrenfest's theorem in relativistic quantum mechanics and quantum gravity

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Author: Chataignier, Leonardo
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Chataignier, Leonardo
author_facet Chataignier, Leonardo
contents We revisit the concept of phase time, which has been previously proposed as a solution to the problem of time in quantum gravity. Concretely, we show how the geometry of configuration space together with the phase of the wave function of the universe can, under certain conditions, lead to the definition of a positive-definite squared norm from which probabilities can be defined. The norm is conserved under time evolution, and we obtain a version of Ehrenfest's theorem that is analogous to the one in ordinary quantum mechanics. We address how the present approach avoids some difficulties that were encountered in previous attempts at defining an Ehrenfest theorem relative to phase time in the context of relativistic quantum mechanics and canonical quantum gravity, and how it is connected to a notion of gauge fixing the inner product. We conclude with a brief outlook.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2408_08953
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Phase time and Ehrenfest's theorem in relativistic quantum mechanics and quantum gravity
Chataignier, Leonardo
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
High Energy Physics - Theory
Quantum Physics
We revisit the concept of phase time, which has been previously proposed as a solution to the problem of time in quantum gravity. Concretely, we show how the geometry of configuration space together with the phase of the wave function of the universe can, under certain conditions, lead to the definition of a positive-definite squared norm from which probabilities can be defined. The norm is conserved under time evolution, and we obtain a version of Ehrenfest's theorem that is analogous to the one in ordinary quantum mechanics. We address how the present approach avoids some difficulties that were encountered in previous attempts at defining an Ehrenfest theorem relative to phase time in the context of relativistic quantum mechanics and canonical quantum gravity, and how it is connected to a notion of gauge fixing the inner product. We conclude with a brief outlook.
title Phase time and Ehrenfest's theorem in relativistic quantum mechanics and quantum gravity
topic General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
High Energy Physics - Theory
Quantum Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2408.08953