QSI Topical Seminar: Nabin Bhatta (Virginia Tech)

TITLE:  Dynamics of the Density Cube

ABSTRACT:  It is well known that the quantum interference pattern in a double-slit experiment cannot be written as a sum of two single-slit patterns. However, as first noted by Rafael Sorkin, if one considers a setup consisting of three or more slits, quantum theory predicts no genuinely new interference effects because the resulting interference pattern can be expressed entirely in terms of one and two-slit patterns. Therefore, the degree of interference in quantum theory is said to be limited to second order.
Density cube theory is an extension of quantum theory where states are represented by three-index objects called density cubes instead of two-index density matrices. This framework explicitly exhibits third order interference and hence contains genuinely post-quantum effects. However, the possibility of an equation of motion for such a theory, analogous to the von-Neumann equation for the density matrix, has remained an open problem. In this talk, we will describe our proposal for a dynamical equation for density cubes. Interestingly, it is naturally connected to the problem of quantizing the Nambu bracket, a generalization of the Poisson bracket proposed by Yoichiro Nambu in 1973.

Time/Location: 3:00pm, Physics Bldg. Room 401