The attempt to conceive the quantum-theoretical description as the complete description of the individual systems leads to unnatural theoretical interpretations, which immediately become unnecessary if one accepts the interpretation that the description refers to ensembles of systems and not to individual systems. — Albert Einstein (1879–1955) [1], p. 671.
This quotation is perhaps the most famous statement of the ensemble interpretation of quantum mechanics. The role of the ensemble in quantum mechanics ranges from innocuous to profound, and even controversial.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Primary Literature
A. Einstein: in Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist, ed. P. A. Schilpp (Harper & Row, New York), 665–88 (1949).
E. Schrödinger: Die gegenwärtige Situation in der Quantenmechanik, Naturwissenschaften. 23, 807–12, 823–28, 844–49 (1935); english translation, The Present Situation in Quantum Mechanics, in Wheeler and Zurek (1983), 152–67.
J. A. Wheeler and W. H. Zurek: Quantum Theory and Measurement. (Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ) (1983).
L. E. Ballentine: The Statistical Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics. Rev. Mod. Phys. 42, 358–81 (1970).
L. E. Ballentine: Quantum Mechanics: A Modern Development. (World Scientific, Singapore) (1998).
Secondary Literature
D. Home, M. A. B. Whitaker: Ensemble Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics. Phys. Rep. 210(4), 223–317 (1992).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Ballentine, L.E. (2009). Ensembles in Quantum Mechanics. In: Greenberger, D., Hentschel, K., Weinert, F. (eds) Compendium of Quantum Physics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70626-7_63
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70626-7_63
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-70622-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-70626-7
eBook Packages: Physics and AstronomyPhysics and Astronomy (R0)