Time in Quantum Mechanics

In Craig Callender (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Time. Oxford University Press (2011)
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Abstract

Time is often said to play in quantum mechanics an essentially different role from position: whereas position is represented by a Hermitian operator, time is represented by a c-number. This discrepancy has been found puzzling and has given rise to a vast literature and many efforts at a solution. In this paper it is argued that the discrepancy is only apparent and that there is nothing in the formalism of quantum mechanics that forces us to treat position and time differently. The apparent problem is caused by the dominant role point particles play in physics and can be traced back to classical mechanics

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original Hilgevoord, Jan; Atkinson, David (2011) "Time in Quantum Mechanics". In Callender, Craig, The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Time, pp. : Oxford University Press (2011)

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Citations of this work

Time in quantum mechanics: a story of confusion.Jan Hilgevoord - 2005 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 36 (1):29-60.
Time and quantum theory: A history and a prospectus.Thomas Pashby - 2015 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 52 (Part A):24-38.
Time in quantum mechanics.Gordon N. Fleming - 2005 - Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part B: Studies in History and Philosophy of Modern Physics 36 (1):181-190.

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