Quantum theory: Informational foundations and foils

Description

This book provides the first unified overview of the burgeoning research area at the interface between Quantum Foundations and Quantum Information. Topics include: operational alternatives to quantum theory, information-theoretic reconstructions of the quantum formalism, mathematical frameworks for operational theories, and device-independent features of the set of quantum correlations. Powered by the injection of fresh ideas from the field of Quantum Information and Computation, the foundations of Quantum Mechanics are in the midst of a renaissance. The last two decades have seen an explosion of new results and research directions, attracting broad interest in the scientific community. The variety and number of different approaches, however, makes it challenging for a newcomer to obtain a big picture of the field and of its high-level goals. Here, fourteen original contributions from leading experts in the field cover some of the most promising research directions that have emerged in the new wave of quantum foundations. The book is directed at researchers in physics, computer science, and mathematics and would be appropriate as the basis of a graduate course in Quantum Foundations. Read more... Abstract: This book provides the first unified overview of the burgeoning research area at the interface between Quantum Foundations and Quantum Information. Topics include: operational alternatives to quantum theory, information-theoretic reconstructions of the quantum formalism, mathematical frameworks for operational theories, and device-independent features of the set of quantum correlations. Powered by the injection of fresh ideas from the field of Quantum Information and Computation, the foundations of Quantum Mechanics are in the midst of a renaissance. The last two decades have seen an explosion of new results and research directions, attracting broad interest in the scientific community. The variety and number of different approaches, however, makes it challenging for a newcomer to obtain a big picture of the field and of its high-level goals. Here, fourteen original contributions from leading experts in the field cover some of the most promising research directions that have emerged in the new wave of quantum foundations. The book is directed at researchers in physics, computer science, and mathematics and would be appropriate as the basis of a graduate course in Quantum Foundations Front Matter....Pages i-vi Introduction....Pages 1-18 Front Matter....Pages 19-19 Optimal Information Transfer and Real-Vector-Space Quantum Theory....Pages 21-43 Almost Quantum Theory....Pages 45-81 Quasi-Quantization: Classical Statistical Theories with an Epistemic Restriction....Pages 83-135 Front Matter....Pages 137-137 Information-Theoretic Postulates for Quantum Theory....Pages 139-170 Quantum from Principles....Pages 171-221 Reconstructing Quantum Theory....Pages 223-248 The Classical Limit of a Physical Theory and the Dimensionality of Space....Pages 249-282 Some Negative Remarks on Operational Approaches to Quantum Theory....Pages 283-305 Front Matter....Pages 307-307 Generalised Compositional Theories and Diagrammatic Reasoning....Pages 309-366 Post-Classical Probability Theory....Pages 367-420 Front Matter....Pages 421-421 Information Causality....Pages 423-438 Macroscopic Locality....Pages 439-463 Guess Your Neighbour’s Input: No Quantum Advantage but an Advantage for Quantum Theory....Pages 465-496 The Completeness of Quantum Theory for Predicting Measurement Outcomes....Pages 497-528