Superluminal Transformations and Indeterminism

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Sen, Amrapali, Del Santo, Flavio
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2026
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author Sen, Amrapali
Del Santo, Flavio
author_facet Sen, Amrapali
Del Santo, Flavio
contents Quantum theory is widely regarded as fundamentally indeterministic, yet classical frameworks can also exhibit indeterminism once infinite information is abandoned. At the same time, relativity is usually taken to forbid superluminal signalling, although Lorentz symmetry formally admits superluminal transformations (SpTs). Dragan and Ekert have argued that SpTs entail a form of indeterminism analogous to that encountered in quantum theory. Here, we derive a theory-independent no-go theorem from a set of natural assumptions: any framework admitting non-order-preserving SpTs must either abandon finite information, relinquish time-symmetric informational content, deny that the past stores memory, or abandon the notion that time determines a preferred causal ordering. In particular, one possible implication is that any theory accommodating SpTs suggests an ontology with unbounded informational content, akin to deterministic classical theories formulated over the real numbers. Consequently, any ontic indeterminacy associated with superluminal transformations cannot originate from finite information.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_15263
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Superluminal Transformations and Indeterminism
Sen, Amrapali
Del Santo, Flavio
Quantum Physics
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
History and Philosophy of Physics
Quantum theory is widely regarded as fundamentally indeterministic, yet classical frameworks can also exhibit indeterminism once infinite information is abandoned. At the same time, relativity is usually taken to forbid superluminal signalling, although Lorentz symmetry formally admits superluminal transformations (SpTs). Dragan and Ekert have argued that SpTs entail a form of indeterminism analogous to that encountered in quantum theory. Here, we derive a theory-independent no-go theorem from a set of natural assumptions: any framework admitting non-order-preserving SpTs must either abandon finite information, relinquish time-symmetric informational content, deny that the past stores memory, or abandon the notion that time determines a preferred causal ordering. In particular, one possible implication is that any theory accommodating SpTs suggests an ontology with unbounded informational content, akin to deterministic classical theories formulated over the real numbers. Consequently, any ontic indeterminacy associated with superluminal transformations cannot originate from finite information.
title Superluminal Transformations and Indeterminism
topic Quantum Physics
General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology
History and Philosophy of Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.15263