Recently, Bohmian mechanics has been challenged [Nature 643, 67 (2025)] by studying a system in which the motion of particles cannot be associated only with the gradient of phase of the wave function. We point out that, in general, Bohmian velocity is defined by the continuity equation, which does not always lead to velocity depending only on the phase gradient. By constructing the appropriate velocity explicitly, we overcome the challenge.
I present a short overview of my recent achievements on the Bohmian interpretation of relativistic quantum mechanics, quantum field theory and string theory. This includes the relativistic-covariant Bohmian equations for particle trajectories, the problem of particle creation and destruction, the Bohmian interpretation of fermionic fields and the intrinsically Bohmian quantization of fields and strings based on the De Donder-Weyl covariant canonical formalism.
In this article we show that the fundamental equations of relativistic Bohmian mechanics for a single particle can be derived from a scalar theory of curved space-time.
I present a relativistic covariant version of the Bohmian interpretation of quantum mechanics and discuss the corresponding measurable predictions. The covariance is incoded in the fact that the nonlocal quantum potential transforms as a scalar, which is a consequence of the fact that the nonlocal wave function transforms as a scalar. The measurable predictions that can be obtained with the deterministic Bohmian interpretation cannot be obtained with the conventional interpretation simply because the conventional probabilistic interpretation does not work in the case of relativistic quantum me…
The covariant canonical method of quantization based on the De Donder-Weyl covariant canonical formalism is used to formulate a world-sheet covariant quantization of bosonic strings. To provide the consistency with the standard non-covariant canonical quantization, it is necessary to adopt a Bohmian deterministic hidden-variable equation of motion. In this way, string theory suggests a solution to the problem of measurement in quantum mechanics.
In non-relativistic Bohmian mechanics the universe is represented by a probability space whose sample space is composed of the Bohmian trajectories. In relativistic Bohmian mechanics an entire class of empirically equivalent probability spaces can be defined, one for every foliation of spacetime. In the literature the hypothesis has been advanced that a single preferred foliation is allowed, and that this foliation derives from the universal wave function by means of a covariant law. In the present paper the opposite hypothesis is advanced, i.e., no law exists for the foliations and therefore …
Even though the Bohmian trajectories given by integral curves of the conserved Klein-Gordon current may involve motions backwards in time, the natural relativistic probability density of particle positions is well-defined. The Bohmian theory predicts subtle deviations from the statistical predictions of more conventional formulations of quantum theory, but it seems that no present experiment rules this theory out. The generalization to the case of many particles or strings is straightforward, provided that a preferred foliation of spacetime is given.
Bosonic and fermionic particle currents can be introduced in a more unified way, with the cost of introducing a preferred spacetime foliation. Such a unified treatment of bosons and fermions naturally emerges from an analogous superstring current, showing that the preferred spacetime foliation appears only at the level of effective field theory, not at the fundamental superstring level. The existence of the preferred spacetime foliation allows an objective definition of particles associated with quantum field theory in curved spacetime. Such an objective definition of particles makes the Bohmi…
Bohmian mechanics is a theory about point particles moving along trajectories. It has the property that in a world governed by Bohmian mechanics, observers see the same statistics for experimental results as predicted by quantum mechanics. Bohmian mechanics thus provides an explanation of quantum mechanics. Moreover, the Bohmian trajectories are defined in a non-conspiratorial way by a few simple laws.
This paper is an introduction to the ideas of Bohmian mechanics, an interpretation of quantum mechanics in which the observer plays no fundamental role. Bohmian mechanics describes, instead of probabilities of measurement results, objective microscopic events. In recent years, Bohmian mechanics has attracted increasing attention by researchers. The form of a dialogue allows me to address questions about the Bohmian view that often arise.
Since Bohmian mechanics is explicitly nonlocal, it is widely believed that it is very hard, if not impossible, to make Bohmian mechanics compatible with relativistic quantum field theory (QFT). I explain, in simple terms, that it is not hard at all to construct a Bohmian theory that lacks Lorentz covariance, but makes the same measurable predictions as relativistic QFT. All one has to do is to construct a Bohmian theory that makes the same measurable predictions as QFT in one Lorentz frame, because then standard relativistic QFT itself guarantees that those predictions are Lorentz invariant. I…
Bohmian mechanics can be generalized to a relativistic theory without preferred foliation, with a price of introducing a puzzling concept of spacetime probability conserved in a scalar time. We explain how analogous concept appears naturally in classical statistical mechanics of relativistic particles, with scalar time being identified with the proper time along particle trajectories. The conceptual understanding of relativistic Bohmian mechanics is significantly enriched by this classical insight. In particular, the analogy between classical and Bohmian mechanics suggests the interpretation o…
It is shown that the apparent incompatibility of Bohmian mechanics with standard quantum mechanics, found by Akhavan and Golshani quant-ph/0305020, is an artefact of the fact that the initial wavefunction they use, being proportional to a $δ$-function, is not a regular wavefunction.
The many-fingered time (MFT) formulation of many-particle quantum mechanics and quantum field theory is a natural framework that overcomes the problem of "instantaneous collapse" in entangled systems that exhibit nonlocalities. The corresponding Bohmian interpretation can also be formulated in terms of MFT beables, which alleviates the problem of instantaneous action at a distance by using an ontology that differs from that in the standard Bohmian interpretation. The appearance of usual single-time particle-positions and fields is recovered by quantum measurements.
Two recent claims by A. Neumaier (quant-ph/0001011) and P. Ghose (quant-ph/0001024) that Bohmian mechanics is incompatible with quantum mechanics for correlations involving time are shown to be unfounded.
A deterministic Bohmian mechanics for operators with continuous and discrete spectra is presented. Randomness enters only through initial conditions. Operators with discrete spectra are incorporated into Bohmian mechanics by associating with each operator a continuous variable in which a finite range of the continuous variable correspond to the same discrete eigenvalue. In this way Bohmian mechanics can handle the creation and annihilation of particles. Examples are given and generalizations are discussed.
A review of "Bohmian Mechanics and Quantum Theory: An Appraisal" (James Cushing, Arthur Fine and Sheldon Goldstein, Eds.), an extensive collection of articles on Bohmian mechanics. In addition to broad, critical overviews of Bohmian mechanics, the reviewed collection contains extensions and hybrid versions of the theory and several detailed applications to practical situtations.
This paper analyses the phenomenon of entanglement exchange in Bohm's pilot wave interpretation of quantum mechanics. The interesting feature of the phenomenon is that systems become entangled without causal interaction; hence it is a useful situation for investigating the unique nature of interaction in Bohmian mechanics. The first two sections introduce, respectively, entanglement exchange in the standard interpretation of quantum mechanics, and the basic principles of Bohmian mechanics. The next section shows that the Bohmian interpretation makes the same experimental predictions about enta…
It is shown that, for a harmonic oscillator in the ground state, Bohmian mechanics and quantum mechanics predict values of opposite sign for certain time correlations. The discrepancy can be explained by the fact that Bohmian mechanics has no natural way to accomodate the Heisenberg picture, since the local expectation values that define the beables of the theory depend on the Heisenberg time being used to define the operators. Relations to measurement are discussed, too, and shown to leave no loophole for claiming that Bohmian mechanics reproduces all predictions of quantum mechanics exactly.
Bohmian mechanics is a quantum theory with a clear ontology. To make clear what we mean by this, we shall proceed by recalling first what are the problems of quantum mechanics. We shall then briefly sketch the basics of Bohmian mechanics and indicate how Bohmian mechanics solves these problems and clarifies the status and the role of of the quantum formalism.
In Bohmian mechanics particles follow continuous trajectories, hence 2-time position correlations are well defined. Nevertheless, Bohmian mechanics predicts the violation of Bell inequalities. Motivated by this fact we investigate position measurements in Bohmian mechanics by coupling the particles to macroscopic pointers. This explains the violation of Bell inequalities despite 2-time position correlations. We relate this fact to so-called surrealistic trajectories that, in our model, correspond to slowly moving pointers. Next, we emphasize that the nice feature of Bohmian mechanics, which do…
We propose the idea that in Bohmian mechanics the wavefunction is related to a density of states and explore some of its consequences. Specifically, it allows a maximum-entropy interpretation of quantum probabilities, which creates a stronger link between it and statistical mechanics. The proposed approach also allows a range of extensions of the guidance condition in Bohmian mechanics.
In classical relativistic mechanics, a "preferred" proper direction in spacetime for each particle is determined by the direction of its 4-momentum. Analogously, for each quantum particle we find a local direction uniquely determined by the many-particle wave function, which for each particle defines the proper foliation of spacetime. This can be used to formulate a relativistic-covariant version of Bohmian mechanics, with equivariant probability density on proper hypersurfaces.
In a recent article (New Journal of Physics 9, 165, 2007), Wiseman has proposed the use of so-called weak measurements for the determination of the velocity of a quantum particle at a given position, and has shown that according to quantum mechanics the result of such a procedure is the Bohmian velocity of the particle. Although Bohmian mechanics is empirically equivalent to variants based on velocity formulas different from the Bohmian one, and although it has been proven that the velocity in Bohmian mechanics is not measurable, we argue here for the somewhat paradoxical conclusion that Wisem…
The interpretations of a particular quantum gedanken experiment provided by Bohmian mechanics and consistent histories are shown to contradict each other, both in the absence and in the presence of a measuring device. The consistent history result seems closer to standard quantum mechanics, and shows no evidence of the mysterious nonlocal influences present in the Bohmian description.
According to Bohmian mechanics, we see the particle, not the pilot wave. But to make predictions we need to know the wave. How do we learn about the wave to make predictions, if we only see the particle? I show that the puzzle can be solved, but only thanks to decoherence.
In recent years, intensive effort has gone into developing numerical tools for exact quantum mechanical calculations that are based on Bohmian mechanics. As part of this effort we have recently developed as alternative formulation of Bohmian mechanics in which the quantum action, S, is taken to be complex [JCP {125}, 231103 (2006)]. In the alternative formulation there is a significant reduction in the magnitude of the quantum force as compared with the conventional Bohmian formulation, at the price of propagating complex trajectories. In this paper we show that Bohmian mechanics with complex …
Conventional relativistic quantum mechanics, based on the Klein-Gordon equation, does not possess a natural probabilistic interpretation in configuration space. The Bohmian interpretation, in which probabilities play a secondary role, provides a viable interpretation of relativistic quantum mechanics. We formulate the Bohmian interpretation of many-particle wave functions in a Lorentz-covariant way. In contrast with the nonrelativistic case, the relativistic Bohmian interpretation may lead to measurable predictions on particle positions even when the conventional interpretation does not lead t…
The compatibility of standard and Bohmian quantum mechanics has recently been challenged in the context of two-particle interference, both from a theoretical and an experimental point of view. We analyze different setups proposed and derive corresponding exact forms for Bohmian equations of motion. The equations are then solved numerically, and shown to reproduce standard quantum-mechanical results.
Bohmian mechanics reproduces all statistical predictions of quantum mechanics, which ensures that entanglement cannot be used for superluminal signaling. However, individual Bohmian particles can experience superluminal influences. We propose to illustrate this point using a double double-slit setup with path-entangled photons. The Bohmian velocity field for one of the photons can be measured using a recently demonstrated weak-measurement technique. The found velocities strongly depend on the value of a phase shift that is applied to the other photon, potentially at spacelike separation.
The Bohmian interpretation of quantum mechanics adds particle trajectories to the wave function and ensures that the probability distribution of the particle positions agrees with quantum mechanics at any time. This is not sufficient to avoid contradictions with quantum mechanics. There are correlations between particle positions at different times which cannot be reproduced with real particle trajectories. A simple rearrangement of an experimental test of the Bell-CHSH inequality demonstrates this.
Recently, three experiments have been proposed in order to show that the standard and Bohmian quantum mechanics can have different predictions at the individual level of particles. However, these thought experiments have encountered some objections. In this work, it is our purpose to show that our basic conclusions about those experiments are still intact.
We clarify the significance of quasiprobability (QP) in quantum mechanics that is relevant in describing physical quantities associated with a transition process. Our basic quantity is Aharonov's weak value, from which the QP can be defined up to a certain ambiguity parameterized by a complex number. Unlike the conventional probability, the QP allows us to treat two noncommuting observables consistently, and this is utilized to embed the QP in Bohmian mechanics such that its equivalence to quantum mechanics becomes more transparent. We also show that, with the help of the QP, Bohmian mechanics…
Bohmian mechanics is an alternative interpretation of quantum mechanics. We outline the main characteristics of its non-relativistic formulation. Most notably it does provide a simple solution to the infamous measurement problem of quantum mechanics. Presumably the most common objection against Bohmian mechanics is based on its non-locality and its apparent conflict with relativity and quantum field theory. However, several models for a quantum field theoretical generalization do exist. We give a non-technical account of some of these models.
A coarse-grained quantum operator technique is used along with the formalism of Bohmian mechanics endowed with stochastic character at the quantum level in order to address some central issues in the quantum theory of measurement. A surprisingly simple picture of decoherence and EPR correlations emerges from its use.
Recently Ghose (quant-ph/0001024,quant-ph/0003037,quant-ph/0103126) and Golshani and Akhavan (quant-ph/0009040,quant-ph/0103100,quant-ph/0103101) claimed to have found experiments that should be able to distinguish between Standard Quantum Mechanics and Bohmian Mechanics. It is our aim to show that the claims made by Ghose, Golshani and Akhavan are unfounded.
Bohmian mechanics is the most naively obvious embedding imaginable of Schrödinger's equation into a completely coherent physical theory. It describes a world in which particles move in a highly non-Newtonian sort of way, one which may at first appear to have little to do with the spectrum of predictions of quantum mechanics. It turns out, however, that as a consequence of the defining dynamical equations of Bohmian mechanics, when a system has wave function $ψ$ its configuration is typically random, with probability density $ρ$ given by $|ψ|^2$, the quantum equilibrium distribution. It also tu…
We derive for Bohmian mechanics topological factors for quantum systems with a multiply-connected configuration space Q. These include nonabelian factors corresponding to what we call holonomy-twisted representations of the fundamental group of Q. We employ wave functions on the universal covering space of Q. As a byproduct of our analysis, we obtain an explanation, within the framework of Bohmian mechanics, of the fact that the wave function of a system of identical particles is either symmetric or anti-symmetric.
Many recent results suggest that quantum theory is about information, and that quantum theory is best understood as arising from principles concerning information and information processing. At the same time, by far the simplest version of quantum mechanics, Bohmian mechanics, is concerned, not with information but with the behavior of an objective microscopic reality given by particles and their positions. What I would like to do here is to examine whether, and to what extent, the importance of information, observation, and the like in quantum theory can be understood from a Bohmian perspecti…
Basing on the Chetaev's theorem on stable trajectories in dynamics in the presence of dissipative forces we obtain a generalized stability condition for Hamiltonian systems that has the form of the Schrodinger equation. We show that the energy of the dissipative forces generating generalized Chetaev's stability condition exactly coincides with Bohm's "quantum" potential. Using the principle of least action of perturbation we prove that the Bohmian quantum mechanics complemented with the Chetaev's generalized theorem does not have hidden variables.
Several situations, in which an empty wave causes an observable effect, are reviewed. They include an experiment showing ``surrealistic trajectories'' proposed by Englert et al. and protective measurement of the density of the quantum state. Conditions for observable effects due to empty waves are derived. The possibility (in spite of the existence of these examples) of minimalistic interpretation of Bohmian Quantum Mechanics in which only Bohmian positions supervene on our experience is discussed.
This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the Bohmian formulation of quantum mechanics. It starts with a historical review of the difficulties found by Louis de Broglie, David Bohm, and John S. Bell to convince the scientific community about the validity and utility of Bohmian mechanics. Then, a formal explanation of Bohmian mechanics for nonrelativistic, single-particle quantum systems is presented. The generalization to many-particle systems, where the exchange interaction and the spin play an important role, is also presented. After that, the measurement process in Bohmian mechanics…
A derivation of the Bohm model, and some general comments about it, are given. A modification of the model which is formally local and Lorentz-invariant is introduced, and its properties studied for a simple experiment.
Bohmian mechanics, also known as pilot-wave theory or de Broglie-Bohm theory, is a formulation of quantum mechanics whose fundamental axioms are not about what observers will see if they perform an experiment but about what happens in reality. It is therefore called a "quantum theory without observers," alongside with collapse theories and many-worlds theories and in contrast to orthodox quantum mechanics. It follows from these axioms that in a universe governed by Bohmian mechanics, observers will see outcomes with exactly the probabilities specified by the usual rules of quantum mechanics fo…
In order to arrive at Bohmian mechanics from standard nonrelativistic quantum mechanics one need do almost nothing! One need only complete the usual quantum description in what is really the most obvious way: by simply including the positions of the particles of a quantum system as part of the state description of that system, allowing these positions to evolve in the most natural way. The entire quantum formalism, including the uncertainty principle and quantum randomness, emerges from an analysis of this evolution. This can be expressed succinctly---though in fact not succinctly enough---by …
In a previous paper, we obtained the functional form of quantum potential by a quasi-Newtonian approach and without appealing to the wave function. We also described briefly the characteristics of this approach to the Bohmian mechanics. In this article, we consider the quantization problem and we show that the 'eigenvalue postulate' is a natural consequence of continuity condition and there is no need for postulating that the spectrum of energy and angular momentum are eigenvalues of their relevant operators. In other words, the Bohmian mechanics predicts the 'eigenvalue postulate'.
Bohmian trajectories have been used for various purposes, including the numerical simulation of the time-dependent Schroedinger equation and the visualization of time-dependent wave functions. We review the purpose they were invented for: to serve as the foundation of quantum mechanics, i.e., to explain quantum mechanics in terms of a theory that is free of paradoxes and allows an understanding that is as clear as that of classical mechanics. Indeed, they succeed in serving that purpose in the context of a theory known as Bohmian mechanics, to which this article is an introduction.
In this paper the relations between the asymptotic velocity operators of a quantum system and the asymptotic velocities of the associated Bohmian trajectories are studied. In particular it is proved that, under suitable conditions of asymptotic regularity, the probability distribution of the asymptotic velocities of the Bohmian trajectories is equal to the one derived from the asymptotic velocity operators of the associated quantum system. It is also shown that in the relativistic case the distribution of the asymptotic velocities of the Bohmian trajectories is covariant, or equivalently, it d…
In this article, we investigate Bohm's view of quantum theory, especially Bohm's quantum potential, from a new perspective. We develop a quasi-Newtonian approach to Bohmian mechanics. We show that to arrive at Bohmian formulation of quantum mechanics, there is no necessity to start from the Schrödinger equation. We also obtain an equation that restricts the possible forms of quantum potential and determines the functional form of it without appealing to the wave function and the Schrödinger equation. Finally, we discuss about the significance of quantum potential in the conceptual structure of…
We discuss Bohmian paths of the two-level atoms moving in a waveguide through an external resonance-producing field, perpendicular to the waveguide, and localized in a region of finite diameter. The time spent by a particle in a potential region is not well-defined in the standard quantum mechanics, but it is well-defined in the Bohmian mechanics. Bohm's theory is used for calculating the average time spent by a transmitted particle inside the field region and the arrival-time distributions at the edges of the field region. Using the Runge-Kutta method for the integration of the guidance law, …
We discuss the Bohmian mechanics by means of the deformed Schrödinger equation for position dependent mass, in the context of a $q$-algebra inspired by nonextensive statistics. A deduction of the Bohmian quantum formalism is performed by means of a deformed Fisher information functional, from which a deformed Cramér-Rao bound is derived. Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formulations, inherited by the $q$-algebra, are also developed. Then, we illustrate the results with a particle confined in an infinite square potential well. The preservation of the deformed Cramér-Rao bound for the stationary state…
In Bohmian mechanics the distribution $|ψ|^2$ is regarded as the equilibrium distribution. We consider its uniqueness, finding that it is the unique equivariant distribution that is also a local functional of the wave function $ψ$.
In this study, we solve analytically the Schrodinger equation for a macroscopic quantum oscillator as a central system coupled to a large number of environmental micro-oscillating particles. Then, the Langevin equation is obtained for the system using two approaches: Quantum Mechanics and Bohmian Theory. Our results show that the predictions of the two theories are inherently different in real conditions. Nevertheless, the Langevin equation obtained by Bohmian approach could be reduced to the quantum one, when the vibrational frequency of the central system is high enough compared to the maxim…
Quantum mechanical scattering theory is a subject with a long and winding history. We shall pick out some of the most important concepts and ideas of scattering theory and look at them from the perspective of Bohmian mechanics: Bohmian mechanics, having real particle trajectories, provides an excellent basis for analyzing scattering phenomena.
Bohmian mechanics provides an explanation of quantum phenomena in terms of point particles guided by wave functions. This review focuses on the formalism of non-relativistic Bohmian mechanics, rather than its interpretation. Although the Bohmian and standard quantum theories have different formalisms, both give exactly the same predictions for all phenomena. Fifteen years ago, the quantum chemistry community began to study the practical usefulness of Bohmian mechanics. Since then, the scientific community has mainly applied it to study the (unitary) evolution of single-particle wave functions,…
