An investigation of time-symmetric quantum mechanics, Hardys paradox and its

experimental realisation
Research Area
Time symmetric quantum mechanics was first proposed - Aharonov et al. (!"#$ - in the same year that
%ohn &ell pu'lished his famous inequality theorem for a local realistic interpretation of quantum mechanics
using hidden varia'les. (ince then it has led to the development of wea) measurements which are naturally
defined within its formalism. *ontrary to strong measurements in standard quantum mechanics that cause
wavevector collapse, wea) measurements may 'e performed any num'er of intermediate times to give
detailed )nowledge of a system of particles.
Hardy (!!+$ pu'lished his paradox as a way of applying the non-locality and non-lorent, invariance
properties explored 'y &ell to an entangled pair of particles. This was achieved through the use of
counterfactual argument where, under the assumption that the particles follow real paths, contradictions
arise. -ea) measurements have allowed further investigation of these counterfactual statements 'y
reinterpreting the paradox experimentally with entangled photon pairs - .undeen and (tein'erg (+//!$. The
experiment is a form of entanglement distillation for continuous varia'le systems, where correlations of
photon pairs are measured together with their polarisation angle.
The experimental validity of wea) measurements is generally accepted, 'ut their interpretation is still
open to de'ate. 0evertheless they have proved a valua'le tool in the nascent field of quantum computing
where they have led to quantum logic gates in linear optics - 1nill et al. (+//$. -ea) values may vary over
a far larger range and this allows very high amplification most recently seen in the more accurate
measurement of quantum dot spectra. The importance of pre- and post-selected states has only recently 'een
recognised with growing attention leading to the discovery of new applications, many of which are again in
the field of quantum computing for instance in cluster states.
Hardys paradox could 'e investigated in future with experimental versions using fermions where the
negative wea) values will 'e associated with particle properties exhi'iting opposite effects to those
associated with their positive wea) counterparts. The realisation of newer techniques such as ion-traps
proposed 'y 2olmer (+//$ will also allow it to 'e investigated under different applications. 3ndeed the
techniques required are the same as those that will lead to further developments in quantum computing with
the measuring of pre- and post-selected qu'its - &run (+//4$.
3t is only 'y investigating our understanding of quantum mechanics at its most fundamental level with
the aid of thought experiments and challenging our current notions that we can extend our )nowledge to
gain a deeper insight into the true nature of quantum mechanics.
5!" words
Aharonov 6, &ergmann 7.8. and .e'owit, %... (!"#$ Time symmetry in the quantum process of
measurement 7hysical 9eview 5# &#/.
&run T. A. :iosi ., (trun, -. T. (+//4$ Test of wea) measurement on a two- or three- qu'it computer
7hysical 9eview A ;;, /5+/.
Hardy, .. (!!+$ <uantum 2echanics, .ocal 9ealistic Theories, and .orent,-3nvariant 9ealistic Theories
7hysical 9eview .etters "4, +!4.
1nill =., .aflamme 9. and 2il'urn 8.%. (+//$ A scheme for efficient quantum computation with linear
optics 0ature #/!, #".
.undeen, %.(. and (tein'erg A.2. (+//!$ =xperimental >oint wea) measurement on a photon pair as a pro'e
of Hardys paradox 7hysical 9eview .etters /+, /+/#/#.
2olmer 1. (+//$ *ounterfactual statements and wea) measurements? an experimental proposal 7hysics
.etters A +!+, @.