Superluminal local operations in quantum field theory: A ping-pong ball test

It is known that in quantum field theory, localized operations, e.g.\ given by unitary operators in local observable algebras, may lead to non-causal, or superluminal, state changes within their localization region. In this article, it is shown that both in quantum field theory as well as in classic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:arXiv.org 2024-02
Main Authors: Much, Albert, Verch, Rainer
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ball tests
Localization
Operators (mathematics)
Quantum theory
Relativistic theory
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:It is known that in quantum field theory, localized operations, e.g.\ given by unitary operators in local observable algebras, may lead to non-causal, or superluminal, state changes within their localization region. In this article, it is shown that both in quantum field theory as well as in classical relativistic field theory, there are localized operations which correspond to ``instantaneous'' spatial rotations (leaving the localization region invariant) leading to superluminal effects within the localization region. This shows that ``impossible measurement scenarios'' which have been investigated in the literature, and which rely on the presence of localized operations that feature superluminal effects within their localization region, do not only occur in quantum field theory, but also in classical field theory. This article is part of a Special Issue on the 'Physics of Time Travel' in the journal Universe, edited by A. Alonso-Serrano, S. Schuster, J. Santiago and M. Visser.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.2308.16673