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Reference frames, superselection rules, and quantum information

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arxiv quant-ph/0610030 v3 pith:P54SJWCE submitted 2006-10-05 quant-ph

classification quant-ph
keywords informationquantumframesreferencebeenrulessuperselectionunspeakable
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Recently, there has been much interest in a new kind of ``unspeakable'' quantum information that stands to regular quantum information in the same way that a direction in space or a moment in time stands to a classical bit string: the former can only be encoded using particular degrees of freedom while the latter are indifferent to the physical nature of the information carriers. The problem of correlating distant reference frames, of which aligning Cartesian axes and synchronizing clocks are important instances, is an example of a task that requires the exchange of unspeakable information and for which it is interesting to determine the fundamental quantum limit of efficiency. There have also been many investigations into the information theory that is appropriate for parties that lack reference frames or that lack correlation between their reference frames, restrictions that result in global and local superselection rules. In the presence of these, quantum unspeakable information becomes a new kind of resource that can be manipulated, depleted, quantified, etcetera. Methods have also been developed to contend with these restrictions using relational encodings, particularly in the context of computation, cryptography, communication, and the manipulation of entanglement. This article reviews the role of reference frames and superselection rules in the theory of quantum information processing.

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Cited by 13 Pith papers

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

  1. Gravitational null rays: Covariant Quantization and the Dressing Time

    hep-th 2026-04 unverdicted novelty 8.0 of 10

    Gravitational null rays are quantized in a diffeomorphism-covariant way using the gravitational dressing time as quantum reference frame, producing a Virasoro crossed-product algebra of gauge-invariant observables.

  2. 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...

  3. Indefinite probabilities in quantum spacetime: A deepening of unpredictability

    quant-ph 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 7.0 of 10

    Using the SU_q(2) quantum group for spin rotations yields non-commuting probability operators, implying indefinite probabilities and preventing sharp determination of relative observer orientations.

  4. 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.

  5. Partitions in quantum theory

    quant-ph 2025-06 conditional novelty 7.0 of 10

    A definition of multipartitions of quantum systems into possibly non-factor sub-C* algebras, with a representation theorem showing that some partitions, such as fermionic modes, are not fully representable on tensor-p...

  6. Understanding Color Confinement through Quantum Reference Frames and Relational Observables

    hep-th 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 6.0 of 10

    Color confinement arises from the lack of a global color QRF supporting isolated non-singlet relational observables, with consistency checks in lower-dimensional models.

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. Operational Tube-Sector Theory of Quantum State Distinguishability Under Generalized Symmetries

    hep-th 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 5.0 of 10

    Introduces tube-sector probabilities from the center of boundary tube algebras to give optimal one-shot distinguishability of quantum states under generalized symmetries.

  11. On Perturbatively Dressed Observables

    hep-th 2026-05 unverdicted novelty 5.0 of 10

    Perturbative dressing of local operators in QED and GR induces kinematic singularities and is mathematically equivalent to dynamical temporal gauge fixing.

  12. 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.

  13. Rethinking quantum information in gravity and fields

    hep-th 2026-06 unverdicted novelty 2.0 of 10

    The paper organizes important open questions in quantum gravity and quantum information into four themes without presenting new results or derivations.

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