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Quantum reference frame transformations as symmetries and the paradox of the third particle

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arxiv 2011.01951 v2 pith:BXK23RXL submitted 2020-11-03 quant-ph gr-qcmath-phmath.MP

classification quant-phgr-qcmath-phmath.MP
keywords quantumparadoxparticlephysicalreferencesymmetriestransformationsframe
verification ladder T0 review T1 audit T2 compute T3 formal

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In a quantum world, reference frames are ultimately quantum systems too -- but what does it mean to "jump into the perspective of a quantum particle"? In this work, we show that quantum reference frame (QRF) transformations appear naturally as symmetries of simple physical systems. This allows us to rederive and generalize known QRF transformations within an alternative, operationally transparent framework, and to shed new light on their structure and interpretation. We give an explicit description of the observables that are measurable by agents constrained by such quantum symmetries, and apply our results to a puzzle known as the `paradox of the third particle'. We argue that it can be reduced to the question of how to relationally embed fewer into more particles, and give a thorough physical and algebraic analysis of this question. This leads us to a generalization of the partial trace (`relational trace') which arguably resolves the paradox, and it uncovers important structures of constraint quantization within a simple quantum information setting, such as relational observables which are key in this resolution. While we restrict our attention to finite Abelian groups for transparency and mathematical rigor, the intuitive physical appeal of our results makes us expect that they remain valid in more general situations.

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Cited by 6 Pith papers

Reviewed papers in the Pith corpus that reference this work. Sorted by Pith novelty score. Full citation record

  1. How many degrees of freedom describe a quantum N-particle state?

    quant-ph 2026-07 conditional novelty 7.0 of 10

    For closed quantum N-particle systems all 3N canonical degrees of freedom are physical; the frame degrees of freedom that relational models discard reappear as non-Heisenberg terms in generalised uncertainty relations...

  2. Relational entanglement entropies and quantum reference frames in gauge theories

    hep-th 2025-06 accept novelty 7.0 of 10

    Quantum reference frames built from Wilson lines give lattice gauge theories gauge-invariant subsystem factorizations and a hierarchy of relational entanglement entropies.

  3. On the relation between perspective-neutral, algebraic, and effective quantum reference frames

    quant-ph 2025-07 conditional novelty 6.0 of 10

    For ideal quantum reference frames with a single constraint, the perspective-neutral, algebraic, and effective semiclassical approaches describe the same physics and the same frame-switching rules.

  4. Crossed products and quantum reference frames: on the observer-dependence of gravitational entropy

    hep-th 2024-12 accept novelty 6.0 of 10

    Gravitational subregion entropy is observer-dependent: different quantum clocks produce different von Neumann algebras and different entropy functionals for the same global state.

  5. Specifying the operational meaning of quantum reference frames

    quant-ph 2026-07 conditional novelty 5.0 of 10

    Position-superposed labs define quantum reference frames operationally, differ from Wigner's-friend observers, and can broadcast outcomes without decohering their position superposition.

  6. What can we do in a symmetry-constrained perspective? The importance of the total charge's status in quantum reference frame frameworks

    quant-ph 2025-10 conditional novelty 5.0 of 10

    A two-observer Z2 toy model is used to argue that internal observers can access the total charge, favoring weak over strong symmetry in quantum reference frame frameworks.

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