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Coherence, Entanglement, and Reductionist Explanation In Quantum Physics

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Revisiting the Foundations of Relativistic Physics

Abstract

The scope and nature of reductionist explanation in physics is analyzed, with special attention being paid to the situation in quantum mechanics. Five different senses of “reduction” are identified. The strongest of these, called “strong reduction,” is the one that purports to capture the relations between macroscopic and microscopic physics. It is shown that the criteria for strong reduction are violated by explanations in quantum mechanics which involve “entangled states.” The notion of “coherence” in physical systems is also defined. It is shown that, contrary to many current views, the invocation of coherence does not necessarily lead to the violation of strong reduction. However, entangled systems also exhibit coherence. Therefore, the subclass of coherent systems that are entangled presents problems for strong reduction.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Boston University, Boston

    Gregg Jaeger

  2. University of Texas at Austin, Austin

    Sahotra Sarkar

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  1. Gregg Jaeger
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  2. Sahotra Sarkar
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Editor information

Jürgen Renn Lindy Divarci Petra Schröter Abhay Ashtekar Robert S. Cohen Don Howard Sahotra Sarkar Abner Shimony

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Jaeger, G., Sarkar, S. (2003). Coherence, Entanglement, and Reductionist Explanation In Quantum Physics. In: Renn, J., et al. Revisiting the Foundations of Relativistic Physics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-0111-3_26

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-0111-3_26

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-1285-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-010-0111-3

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