Forward-time equivalent of a retrocausal diffusion hidden-variable model for quantum mechanics
Abstract
A recently proposed stochastic hidden variable model for quantum mechanics has been claimed to involve "retrocausality" due to the appearance of equations of motion with future-time boundary conditions. We formulate an equivalent system of forward-time equations of motion that gives rise to the same trajectories as solutions, but involves only initial-time boundary conditions. The forward-time dynamics involves a guidance term for the dynamical variables, determined by the phase-space distribution corresponding to a quantum wavefunction. We show, however, that this particular guidance term can be recovered as the mean-field limit of averaged pairwise interactions among an ensemble of finitely many particles.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Quantum Mechanics and Applications
Noncommutative and Quantum Gravity Theories
Philosophy and History of Science
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Physical Review A
- Volume
- 113
- Issue
- 2
- Publication date
- 16 January 2026
- Language
- EN