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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Edwin Jaynes is recognized as one of the founding figures of both quantum electrodynamics and an advocate for applying maximum entropy to nonequilibrium statistical mechanics. However, many of his ideas were (and still are) viewed as odd or even heretical. This talk reviews some of those less well-known ideas, including the quantum telegraph process and objections to the zero point energy. Exploring the reasoning behind them shows that more robust connections still need to be made from quantum field theory to conventional atomistic quantum mechanics. Following this suggestion, I present some recent results on the theory of maximum transition entropy. The theory is capable of deriving both classical Langevin and Brownian motion, as well as the quantum master equation of Caldeira and Leggett.
Host: Diego Dalvit