A Century After Heisenberg: Discovering the World of Simultaneous Measurements

Explore the evolution of quantum measurement theory in this distinguished lecture by Carlton M. Caves from the University of New Mexico. Delve into the century-long quest to understand simultaneous measurements of noncommuting observables, beginning with Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle. Discover the concept of instrument autonomy and the universal instrument program, which operate independently of quantum states and Hilbert space. Examine special cases like measuring position and momentum, and the three components of angular momentum, where instruments approach phase-space boundaries populated by coherent states. Learn how these primitive instruments structure Hilbert space representations and contrast them with the chaotic behavior of instruments measuring other observable sets. Gain insights into the groundbreaking work done in collaboration with Christopher S. Jackson, exploring a new world where Kraus operators inhabit a universal Lie-group manifold generated by the measured observables themselves.