Conditions for Quantum Violation of Macrorealism in Large-spin Limit

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Authors: Q. Y. Cai, Xixi Yu, Ma-Cheng Yang, Ao-Xiang Liu, Cong‐Feng Qiao
Cited by: 0
References: 63

Abstract

Abstract This study investigates the emergence of macroscopic classical behavior from quantum foundations via the entropic Leggett--Garg inequality. We introduce a geometric framework for deriving entropic Leggett--Garg inequalities with higher-order temporal correlations and demonstrate their advantages over conventional formulations. Numerical analyses show that entropic Leggett--Garg inequalities offer a robust and complementary criterion to standard approaches, providing a transparent information theoretic interpretation that facilitates the characterization of coherent quantum processes. By applying the WKB approximation, we prove that violations for maximally mixed states remain bounded by a constant in the macroscopic limit, indicating that macrorealism dominates in generic parameter regimes. We further explain previously reported maximal violations at specific parameter regimes as a consequence of the breakdown of the WKB approximation. Our findings indicate that quantum and classical descriptions remain macroscopically incompatible, while violations persist only in fine-tuned regimes, clarifying the conditions for detecting macroscopic quantum phenomena.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Quantum Mechanics and Applications

Publication details

Journal / source
Research Square
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Publication date
7 May 2026
Language
EN
Document type
Preprint