Pre- and Post-selection paradoxes and contextuality in quantum mechanics

Abstract

Many seemingly paradoxical effects are known in the predictions for outcomes of intermediate measurements made on pre- and post-selected quantum systems. Despite appearances, these effects do not demonstrate the impossibility of a noncontextual hidden variable theory, since an explanation in terms of measurement-disturbance is possible. Nonetheless, we show that for every paradoxical effect wherein all the pre- and post- selected probabilities are 0 or 1 and the pre- and post-selected states are nonorthogonal, there is an associated proof of contextuality. This proof is obtained by considering all the measurements involved in the paradoxical effect -- the pre-selection, the post-selection, and the alternative possible intermediate measurements -- as alternative possible measurements at a single time.

5 pages, 1 figure. Submitted to Phys. Rev. Lett. v2.0 revised in the light of referee comments, results unchanged

References in corpus (4)

• Contextuality for preparations, transformations, and unsharp measurements
• Experimental Realization of the Quantum Box Problem
• Lorentz-Invariant "Elements of Reality" and the Question of Joint Measurability of Commuting Observables
• Classical Three-Box "paradox"

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