Classical Causal Models for Bell and Kochen-Specker Inequality Violations Require Fine-Tuning (original) (raw)

Classical causal models cannot faithfully explain Bell nonlocality or Kochen-Specker contextuality in arbitrary scenarios

Quantum, 2021

In a recent work, it was shown by one of us (EGC) that Bell-Kochen-Specker inequality violations in phenomena satisfying the no-disturbance condition (a generalisation of the no-signalling condition) cannot in general be explained with a faithful classical causal model---that is, a classical causal model that satisfies the assumption of no fine-tuning. The proof of that claim however was restricted to Bell scenarios involving 2 parties or Kochen-Specker-contextuality scenarios involving 2 measurements per context. Here we show that the result holds in the general case of arbitrary numbers of parties or measurements per context; it is not an artefact of the simplest scenarios. This result unifies, in full generality, Bell nonlocality and Kochen-Specker contextuality as violations of a fundamental principle of classical causality. We identify, however, an implicit assumption in the former proof, making it explicit here: that certain operational symmetries of the phenomenon are reflect...

Quantum Local Causality in Non-Metric Space

The possibility that quantum mechanics is founded on non-metric space has been previously introduced as an alternative consequence of Bell inequalities violation. This work develops the concept further by an analysis of the iconic Heisenberg gedanken experiment. No lower bound is found in the gedanken uncertainly relation for a non-metric spatial background. This result has the fundamental consequence that the quantum particle trajectory is retained in non-metric space and time. Assignment of measurement number-values to unmeasured incompatible variables is found to be mathematically incorrect. The current disagreement between different formulations of the empirically verified error-disturbance relations can be explained as a consequence of the structure of space. Quantum contextuality can likewise be explained geometrically. An alternative analysis of the extended EPR perfect anti-correlation configuration is given. The consensus that local causality is the sole assumption is found to be incorrect. There is also the additional assumption of orientation independence. Inequalities violation does not therefore mandate rejection of local causality. Violation of the assumption of orientation independence implies rejection of metric, non-contextual variables algebraically representing physical quantities.

Causality and local determinism versus quantum nonlocality

Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 2014

The entanglement and the violation of Bell and CHSH inequalities in spin polarization correlation experiments (SPCE) is considered to be one of the biggest mysteries of Nature and is called quantum nonlocality. In this paper we show once again that this conclusion is based on imprecise terminology and on the lack of understanding of probabilistic models used in various proofs of Bell and CHSH theorems. These models are inconsistent with experimental protocols used in SPCE. This is the only reason why Bell and CHSH inequalities are violated. A probabilistic non-signalling description of SPCE, consistent with quantum predictions, is possible and it depends explicitly on the context of each experiment. It is also deterministic in the sense that the outcome is determined by supplementary local parameters describing both a physical signals and measuring instruments. The existence of such description gives additional arguments that quantum theory is emergent from some more detailed theory respecting causality and local determinism. If quantum theory is emergent then there exist perhaps some fine structures in time-series of experimental data which were not predicted by quantum theory. In this paper we explain how a systematic search for such fine structures can be done. If such reproducible fine structures were found it would show that quantum theory is not predictably complete what would be a major discovery.

A stronger Bell argument for quantum non-locality

2012

It is widely accepted that the violation of Bell inequalities excludes local theories of the quantum realm. This paper presents a new derivation of the inequalities from non-trivial non-local theories and formulates a stronger Bell argument excluding also these non-local theories. Taking into account all possible theories, the conclusion of this stronger argument provably is the strongest possible consequence from the violation of Bell inequalities on a qualitative probabilistic level (given usual background assumptions). Among the forbidden theories is a subset of outcome dependent theories showing that outcome dependence is not sufficient for explaining a violation of Bell inequalities. Non-local theories which can violate Bell inequalities (among them quantum theory) are rather characterised by the fact that at least one of the measurement outcomes in some sense (which is made precise) probabilistically depends both on its local as well as on its distant measurement setting ('parameter'). When Bell inequalities are found to be violated, the true choice is not 'outcome dependence or parameter dependence' but between two kinds of parameter dependences, one of them being what is usually called 'parameter dependence'. Against the received view established by Jarrett and Shimony that on a probabilistic level quantum non-locality amounts to outcome dependence, this result confirms and makes precise Maudlin's claim that some kind of parameter dependence is required.

Contextuality in Quantum Mechanics: Testing the Klyachko Inequality

2010

The Klyachko inequality is an inequality for the probabiities of the values of five observables of a spin-1 particle, which is satisfied by any noncontextual assignment of values to this set of observables, but is violated by the probabilities defined by a certain quantum state. We describe an experiment between two entangled spin-1 particles to test contextuality via a related inequality. We point out that a test of contextuality by measurements on a single particle to confirm the Klyachko inequality requires an assumption of non-disturbance by the measuring instrument, which is avoided in the two-particle experiment.

The “noncausal causality” of quantum information

2021

The paper is concentrated on the special changes of the conception of causalityfrom quantum mechanics to quantum information meaning as a background the revolution implemented by the former to classical physics and science after Max Born’s probabilistic reinterpretation of wave function. Those changes can be enumerated so: (1) quantum information describes the general case of the relation of two wave functions, and particularly, the causal amendment of a single one; (2) it keeps the physical description to be causal by the conservation of quantum information and in accordance with Born’s interpretation; (3) it introduces inverse causality, “backwards in time”, observable “forwards in time” as the fundamentally random probability density distribution of all possible measurements of any physical quantity in quantum mechanics; (4) it involves a kind of “bidirectional causality” unifying (4.1) the classical determinism of cause and effect, (4.2) the probabilistic causality of quantum me...

Causality and non-local quantum correlations

One usually believes now that Relativity interdicts a physical interaction velocity more than velocity of light in vacuum. Since an “instantaneous” correlation possibility follows from quantum mechanics (QM) as well theoretically as experimentally (paradox of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen, or EPR), the insuperable conflict arises between QM and Relativity. In this paper I propose the solution of this confict.

Bell's Inequalities — Foundations and Quantum Communication

Handbook of Natural Computing, 2012

For individual events quantum mechanics makes only probabilistic predictions. Can one go beyond quantum mechanics in this respect? This question has been a subject of debate and research since the early days of the theory. Efforts to construct deeper, realistic, level of physical description, in which individual systems have, like in classical physics, preexisting properties revealed by measurements are known as hidden-variable programs. Demonstrations that a hiddenvariable program necessarily requires outcomes of certain experiments to disagree with the predictions of quantum theory are called "no-go theorems". The Bell theorem excludes local hidden variable theories. The Kochen-Specker theorem excludes noncontextual hidden variable theories. In local hidden-variable theories faster-thatlight-influences are forbidden, thus the results for a given measurement (actual, or just potentially possible) are independent of the settings of other measurement devices which are at space-like separation. In noncontextual hidden-variable theories the predetermined results of a (degenerate) observable are independent of any other observables that are measured jointly with it. It is a fundamental doctrine of quantum information science that quantum communication and quantum computation outperforms their classical counterparts. If this is to be true, some fundamental quantum characteristics must be behind betterthan-classical performance of information processing tasks. This chapter aims at establishing connections between certain quantum information protocols and foundational issues in quantum theory. After a brief discusion of the most common misinterpretations of Bell's theorem and a discussion of what its real me aning is, iť