The thermodynamics of readout devices and semiclassical gravity

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2509.07096v1
• Date: Mon, 08 Sep 2025 18:00:10 GMT
• Title: The thermodynamics of readout devices and semiclassical gravity
• Authors: Samuel Fedida, Adrian Kent,
• Abstract summary: We focus on hypothetical extensions of quantum theory that contain readout devices.<n>These black boxes provide a classical description of quantum states without perturbing them.<n>We show that the definition of information in the models examined in this paper deviates from that given by von Neumann entropy.
• Score: 0.0
• License: http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/
• Abstract: We analyse the common claim that nonlinear modifications of quantum theory necessarily violate the second law of thermodynamics. We focus on hypothetical extensions of quantum theory that contain readout devices. These black boxes provide a classical description of quantum states without perturbing them. They allow quantum state cloning, though in a way consistent with the relativistic no-signalling principle. We review the existence of such devices in the context of Moller-Rosenfeld semiclassical gravity, which postulates that the gravitational field remains classical and is sourced by the expectation value of a quantum energy-momentum tensor. We show that the definition of information in the models examined in this paper deviates from that given by von Neumann entropy, and that claims of second law violations based on the distinguishability of non-orthogonal states or on violations of uncertainty principles fail to hold in such theories.

Related papers

• Post-Newtonian Constraints on Semiclassical Gravity with Quantum Superpositions [0.0]
  We show that, when the quantum state is properly normalized, no modification of the Newtonian gravitational potential arises at leading order.<n>However, at first post-Newtonian order the semiclassical coupling generically produces state-dependent contributions involving the mass density and the mass current of the superposition.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-12-21T06:31:48Z)
• Einstein's Equivalence Principle in Nonrelativistic Quantum Mechanics [0.0]
  An observer in free fall in a uniform gravitational field is equivalent to an inertial observer in the absence of such a field.<n>The transformations of the wave function are reexamined, and the conditions for the equality of inertial and gravitational mass are established.<n>The results reaffirm the validity of the Equivalence Principle in the nonrelativistic quantum regime.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-02-25T22:27:56Z)
• Mixture equivalence principles and post-quantum theories of gravity [0.0]
  We show that Moller-Rosenfeld semiclassical gravity violates the weak MEP.<n>We argue that Moller-Rosenfeld semiclassical gravity is not the semiclassical limit of quantum gravity in the context of black hole spacetimes.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-12-16T19:02:22Z)
• Semiclassical gravity phenomenology under the causal-conditional quantum measurement prescription II: Heisenberg picture and apparent optical entanglement [13.04737397490371]
  In quantum gravity theory, a state-dependent gravitational potential introduces nonlinearity into the state evolution. The formalism for understanding the continuous quantum measurement process on the quantum state has been previously discussed using the Schr"odinger picture. In this work, an equivalent formalism using the Heisenberg picture is developed and applied to the analysis of two optomechanical experiment protocols.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-11-08T14:07:18Z)
• Generalized Quantum Stein's Lemma and Second Law of Quantum Resource Theories [47.02222405817297]
  A fundamental question in quantum information theory is whether an analogous second law can be formulated to characterize the convertibility of resources for quantum information processing by a single function.<n>In 2008, a promising formulation was proposed, linking resource convertibility to the optimal performance of a variant of the quantum version of hypothesis testing.<n>In 2023, a logical gap was found in the original proof of this lemma, casting doubt on the possibility of such a formulation of the second law.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-08-05T18:00:00Z)
• A Theory of Quantum Jumps [44.99833362998488]
  We study fluorescence and the phenomenon of quantum jumps'' in idealized models of atoms coupled to the quantized electromagnetic field. Our results amount to a derivation of the fundamental randomness in the quantum-mechanical description of microscopic systems.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-04-16T11:00:46Z)
• Quantum Instability [30.674987397533997]
  We show how a time-independent, finite-dimensional quantum system can give rise to a linear instability corresponding to that in the classical system. An unstable quantum system has a richer spectrum and a much longer recurrence time than a stable quantum system.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-08-05T19:53:46Z)
• Semi-classical gravity phenomenology under the causal-conditional quantum measurement prescription [9.842140146649346]
  We study experimentally measurable signatures of SN theory under the causal-conditional prescription in an optomechanical system. We find that quantum measurement can induce a classical correlation between two different optical fields via classical gravity.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-07-13T05:09:55Z)
• Correspondence Between the Energy Equipartition Theorem in Classical Mechanics and its Phase-Space Formulation in Quantum Mechanics [62.997667081978825]
  In quantum mechanics, the energy per degree of freedom is not equally distributed. We show that in the high-temperature regime, the classical result is recovered.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2022-05-24T20:51:03Z)
• Quantum superposition of spacetimes obeys Einstein's Equivalence Principle [0.0]
  We argue that the Equivalence Principle can be generalised so that it holds for reference frames associated to quantum systems in a superposition of spacetimes. This procedure reconciles the principle of linear superposition in Quantum Theory with the principle of general covariance and the Equivalence Principle of General Relativity.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2021-09-03T09:51:18Z)

This list is automatically generated from the titles and abstracts of the papers in this site.

This site does not guarantee the quality of this site (including all information) and is not responsible for any consequences.