An Ising-type classical statistical model is shown to describe quantum fermions. For a suitable time-evolution law for the probability distribution of the Ising-spins our model describes a quantum field theory for Dirac spinors in external electromagnetic fields, corresponding to a mean field approximation to quantum electrodynamics. All quantum features for the motion of an arbitrary number of electrons and positrons, including the characteristic interference effects for two-fermion states, are described by the classical statistical model. For one-particle states in the non-relativistic approximation we derive the Schrödinger equation for a particle in a potential from the time evolution law for the probability distribution of the Ising-spins. Thus all characteristic quantum features, as interference in a double slit experiment, tunneling or discrete energy levels for stationary states, are derived from a classical statistical ensemble. Concerning the particle-wave-duality of quantum mechanics, the discreteness of particles is traced back to the discreteness of occupation numbers or Ising-spins, while the continuity of the wave function reflects the continuity of the probability distribution for the Ising-spins.
Quantum mechanics for a four-state-system is derived from classical statistics. Entanglement, interference, the difference between identical fermions or bosons and the unitary time evolution find an interpretation within a classical statistical ensemble. Quantum systems are subsystems of larger classical statistical systems, which include the environment or the vacuum. They are characterized by incomplete statistics in the sense that the classical correlation function cannot be used for sequences of measurements in the subsystem.
The conceptual setting of quantum mechanics is subject to an ongoing debate from its beginnings until now. The consequences of the apparent differences between quantum statistics and classical statistics range from the philosophical interpretations to practical issues as quantum computing. In this note we demonstrate how quantum mechanics can emerge from classical statistical systems. We discuss conditions and circumstances for this to happen. Quantum systems describe isolated subsystems of classical statistical systems with infinitely many states. While infinitely many classical observables "…
An Ising-type classical statistical ensemble can describe the quantum physics of fermions if one chooses a particular law for the time evolution of the probability distribution. It accounts for the time evolution of a quantum field theory for Dirac particles in an external electromagnetic field. This yields in the non-relativistic one-particle limit the Schrödinger equation for a quantum particle in a potential. Interference or tunneling arise from classical probabilities.
Quantum correlations can be naturally formulated in a classical statistical system of infinitely many degrees of freedom. This realizes the underlying non-commutative structure in a classical statistical setting. We argue that the quantum correlations offer a more robust description with respect to the precise definition of observables.
We formulate incomplete classical statistics for situations where the knowledge about the probability distribution outside a local region is limited. The information needed to compute expectation values of local observables can be collected in a quantum mechanical state vector, whereas further statistical information about the probability distribution outside the local region becomes irrelevant. The translation of the available information between neighboring local regions is expressed by a Hamilton operator. A quantum mechanical operator can be associated to each local observable, such that e…
Quantum mechanics can emerge from classical statistics. A typical quantum system describes an isolated subsystem of a classical statistical ensemble with infinitely many classical states. The state of this subsystem can be characterized by only a few probabilistic observables. Their expectation values define a density matrix if they obey a "purity constraint". Then all the usual laws of quantum mechanics follow, including Heisenberg's uncertainty relation, entanglement and a violation of Bell's inequalities. No concepts beyond classical statistics are needed for quantum physics - the differenc…
We describe fermions in terms of a classical statistical ensemble. The states $τ$ of this ensemble are characterized by a sequence of values one or zero or a corresponding set of two-level observables. Every classical probability distribution can be associated to a quantum state for fermions. If the time evolution of the classical probabilities $p_τ$ amounts to a rotation of the wave function $q_τ(t)=\pm \sqrt{p_τ(t)}$, we infer the unitary time evolution of a quantum system of fermions according to a Schrödinger equation. We establish how such classical statistical ensembles can be mapped to …
Non-commutative quantum physics at the atom scale can arise from coarse graining of a classical statistical ensemble at the Planck scale. Position and momentum of an isolated particle are classical observables which remain computable in terms of the coarse grained information. However, the commuting classical product of position and momentum observables is no longer defined in the coarse grained system, which is therefore described by incomplete statistics. The microphysical classical statistical ensemble at the Planck scale admits an alternative non-commuting product structure for position an…
Generalized quantum statistics such as para-statistics is usually characterized by certain triple relations. In the case of para-Fermi statistics these relations can be associated with the orthogonal Lie algebra B_n=so(2n+1); in the case of para-Bose statistics they are associated with the Lie superalgebra B(0|n)=osp(1|2n). In a previous paper, a mathematical definition of ``a generalized quantum statistics associated with a classical Lie algebra G'' was given, and a complete classification was obtained. Here, we consider the definition of ``a generalized quantum statistics associated with a b…
Inspired by Lefschetz thimble theory, we treat Quantum Field Theory as a statistical theory with a complex Probability Distribution Function (PDF). Such complex-valued PDFs permit the violation of Bell-type inequalities, which cannot be violated by a real-valued, non-negative PDF. In this paper, we consider the Classical-Statistical approximation in the context of Bell-type inequalities, viz. the familiar (spatial) Bell inequalities and the temporal Leggett-Garg inequalities. We show that the Classical-Statistical approximation does not violate temporal Bell-type inequalities, even though it i…
In this paper, we discuss questions related to the renormalizability of the classical statistical approximation, an approximation scheme that has been used recently in several studies of out-of-equilibrium problems in Quantum Field Theory. Although the ultraviolet power counting in this approximation scheme is identical to that of the unapproximated quantum field theory, this approximation is not renormalizable. The leading cause of this non-renormalizability is the breakdown of Weinberg's theorem in this approximation. We also discuss some practical implications of this negative result for si…
In static classical statistical systems the problem of information transport from a boundary to the bulk finds a simple description in terms of wave functions or density matrices. While the transfer matrix formalism is a type of Heisenberg picture for this problem, we develop here the associated Schrödinger picture that keeps track of the local probabilistic information. The transport of the probabilistic information between neighboring hypersurfaces obeys a linear evolution equation, and therefore the superposition principle for the possible solutions. Operators are associated to local observ…
We investigate the conditions under which quantum fluctuations are relevant for the quantitative interpretation of experiments with ultracold Bose gases. This requires to go beyond the description in terms of the Gross-Pitaevskii and Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov mean-field theories, which can be obtained as classical (statistical) field-theory approximations of the quantum many-body problem. We employ functional-integral techniques based on the two-particle irreducible (2PI) effective action. The role of quantum fluctuations is studied within the nonperturbative 2PI 1/N expansion to next-to-leading…
Quantum Yang-Mills theory, Classical Statistical Field Theory (for Hamiltonians which are non-polynomial in the fields, e.g. General relativistic statistical mechanics) and Quantum Gravity all suffer from severe mathematical inconsistencies and produce unreliable predictions at best. We define with mathematical rigor, a class of statistical field theories in Minkowski space-time where the (classical) canonical coordinates when modified by a non-deterministic time evolution, verify the canonical commutation relations. We then extend these statistical field theories to include non-trivial gauge …
Generalized quantum statistics such as para-Fermi statistics is characterized by certain triple relations which, in the case of para-Fermi statistics, are related to the orthogonal Lie algebra B_n=so(2n+1). In this paper, we give a quite general definition of ``a generalized quantum statistics associated to a classical Lie algebra G''. This definition is closely related to a certain Z-grading of G. The generalized quantum statistics is then determined by a set of root vectors (the creation and annihilation operators of the statistics) and the set of algebraic relations for these operators. The…
A dynamical system with discrete time is studied by means of algebraic geometry. The system admits a reduction that is interpreted as a classical field theory in 2+1-dimensional wholly discrete space-time. The integrals of motion of a particular case of the reduced system are shown to coincide, in essence, with the statistical sum of the well-known (inhomogeneous) 2-dimensional dimer model (the statistical sum is here a function of two parameters). Possible generalizations of the system are examined.
We generalize classical statistical mechanics to describe the kinematics and the dynamics of systems whose variables are constrained by a single quantum postulate (discreteness of the spectrum of values of at least one variable of the theory). This is possible provided we adopt Feynman's suggestion of dropping the assumption that the probability for an event must always be a positive number. This approach has the advantage of allowing a reformulation of quantum theory in phase space without introducing the unphysical concept of probability amplitudes, together with all the problems concerning …
We study the retarded response function in scalar $ϕ^4$-theory at finite temperature. We find that in the high-temperature limit the imaginary part of the self-energy is given by the classical theory to leading order in the coupling. In particular the plasmon damping rate is a purely classical effect to leading order, as shown by Aarts and Smit. The dominant contribution to Landau damping is given by the propagation of classical fields in a heat bath of non-interacting fields.
The classical and quantum evolution of a generic probability distribution is analyzed. To that end, a formalism based on the decomposition of the distribution in terms of its statistical moments is used, which makes explicit the differences between the classical and quantum dynamics. In particular, there are two different sources of quantum effects. Distributional effects, which are also present in the classical evolution of an extended distribution, are due to the fact that all moments can not be vanishing because of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. In addition, the non-commutativity of …
The model under consideration is a classical 2D Coulomb gas of pointlike positive and negative unit charges, interacting via a logarithmic potential. In the whole stability range of temperatures, the equilibrium statistical mechanics of this fluid is exactly solvable via an equivalence with the integrable 2D sine-Gordon field theory. The exact solution includes the bulk thermodynamics, special cases of the surface thermodynamics, and the large-distance asymptotic behavior of the two-body correlation functions.
We report the statistical properties of classical particles in (2+1) gravity as resulting from numerical simulations. Only particle momenta have been taken into account. In the range of total momentum where thermal equilibrium is reached, the distribution function and the corresponding Boltzmann entropy are computed. In the presence of large gravity effects, different extensions of the temperature turn out to be inequivalent, the distribution function has a power law high-energy tail and the entropy as a function of the internal energy presents a flex. When the energy approaches the open unive…
Classical-statistical lattice simulations provide a useful approximation to out-of-equilibrium quantum field theory, but only for systems exhibiting large occupation numbers, and only for phenomena that are not intrinsically quantum mechanical in nature. In certain special circumstances, it can be appropriate to initialize such real-time simulations with quantum-like zero-point fluctuations. We will revisit these points, and investigate reports that quantum bubble nucleation rates in 1+1 dimensions can be computed through the classical evolution of such a quantum-like initial condition. We fin…
We investigate a 1D disordered Hamiltonian with a non analytical step-like dispersion relation whose level statistics is exactly described by Semi-Poisson statistics(SP). It is shown that this result is robust, namely, does not depend neither on the microscopic details of the potential nor on a magnetic flux but only on the type of non-analyticity. We also argue that a deterministic kicked rotator with a non-analytical step-like potential has the same spectral properties. Semi-Poisson statistics (SP), typical of pseudo-integrable billiards, has been frequently claimed to describe critical stat…
We examine the impact of different anisotropic relics on inflation, in particular the predictions on the density perturbations. These relics can be the source of the large scale anomalies in the cosmic microwave background. There are two different types of background relics, one from the matter sector and the other purely from the metric. Although the angular-dependence of the statistical anisotropy in both cases are degenerate, the scale-dependence are observationally distinctive. In addition, we demonstrate that non-Bunch-Davies vacuum states can extend the statistical anisotropy to much sho…
We present first results of classical-statistical real-time simulations of anomalous transport phenomena with overlap fermions. We find that even on small lattices overlap fermions reproduce the real-time anomaly equation with much better precision than Wilson-Dirac fermions on an order of magnitude larger lattices. The difference becomes much more pronounced for quickly changing electromagnetic fields, especially if one takes into account the back-reaction of fermions on electromagnetism. As test cases, we consider chirality pumping in parallel electric and magnetic fields and mixing between …
We briefly review the well known connection between classical chaos and classical statistical mechanics, and the recently discovered connection between quantum chaos and quantum statistical mechanics.
In special relativity the mathematical expressions, defining physical observables as the momentum, the energy etc, emerge as one parameter (light speed) continuous deformations of the corresponding ones of the classical physics. Here, we show that the special relativity imposes a proper one parameter continuous deformation also to the expression of the classical Boltzmann-Gibbs-Shannon entropy. The obtained relativistic entropy permits to construct a coherent and selfconsistent relativistic statistical theory [Phys. Rev. E {\bf 66}, 056125 (2002); Phys. Rev. E {\bf 72}, 036108 (2005)], preserv…
