Einstein’s Struggles with Quantum Theory: A Reappraisal 2007th Edition by Dipankar Home (PDF)

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This book presents an account of all aspects of Einstein’s achievements in quantum theory, his own views, and the progress his work has stimulated since his death. While some chapters use mathematics at an undergraduate physics level, a path is provided for the reader more concerned with ideas than equations, and the book will benefit to anybody interested in Einstein and his approach to the quantum.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Most people with a physics degree at least vaguely remember the 1927-1930 gedanken experiment discussed by Bohr and Einstein addressing the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle. This book continues Bohr and Einstein’s debate into the present day, or at least up to the publication date of 2007. Einstein once characterized as “spooky” effects that would seem to suggest a transluminal connection between entangled entities, a view which culminated in his formulation of the Einstein, Podolski, and Rosen paradox in 1935 (and which was, in turn, countered by Bohr’s own proposals). Such spooky effects were put on a much firmer foundation by the experiments of Aspect and others in the 1980’s, 1990’s and early 2000’s–to such a an extent that Bohr’s views might be regarded as triumphant. The authors, however, point out the difficulties in accepting Bohr’s Copenhagen approach–as well as challenges by alternative views of quantum mechanics which have their root in Einstein’s criticisms.The authors address a number of interesting points that I have not seen discussed in my previous readings. In particular, I am interested in their discussion of quantum coherence issues (pp.303-305). The authors challenge the view of Joos and Zeh regarding collisions of a wave packet with the bombarding particles and radiation that would seem to pervade any environment. While Joos and Zeh propose that such collisions limit coherence and therefore wave packet spreading with time, the authors counter that such scattering is not strong enough to introduce significant decoherence.The authors devote a small amount of space (pp.221-246) to Bell’s theorem, and even less space (p.231-236) to the actual experimental tests of this theorem. Unlike other books covering experimental tests of Bell’s theorem, there are no figures laying out the positions of the lasers, optical paths, beam splitters, and detectors used in these experiments. Nevertheless, the compact overview provided by this book is still valuable as it divides the evolution of these empirical tests into a discernible eras. For example, the need for high efficiency detectors (in successful Bell-type entanglement experiments) was first discussed by Clauser et al. in 1969, although it was not until 1987 that is was realized that this efficiency would need to be at least 84% (p.233).I was also interested in the authors’ discussion of David Bohm’s relationship with Einstein (pp.196-199). While at Princeton in the early 1950’s, Bohm laid out to Einstein his program for building on the approach of De Broglie and Schrodinger, which led to what is sometimes called “De Broglie-Bohm” theory. Although Bohm seemed to have received some encouragement from Einstein to pursue this path in these conversations, Einstein did not actively promote or explicitly endorse Bohm’s theory once he came out with it. This lack of backing from Einstein was deeply disappointing to Bohm! Nevertheless, the fact that Einstein did not endorse Bohmian mechanics might be seem as emblematic of Einstein’s view of almost all aspects of quantum theory and its interpretation–that of an independent thinker who could never be satisfied with half-baked ideas.

⭐Reviews by others than me will matter more than this one because much of the math is over my head, beyond my current education, so others will be better qualified to review it. The preface does helpfully indicate which chapters are more accessible to general readers. And reviews in scholarly publications may matter more than those here. Nonetheless, I find this a wonderful detailed retelling of the history of science including Einstein’s hesitations towards some current majority-view Quantum physics. The book offers a narrative of the relevant conjectures, experiments, discoveries, and personal interactions, alliances and rivalries that led to the, for-now, standard view. The authors present a good case that Einstein was not out of touch and irrelevant in his later life, as some caracatures have it, but that he raised questions still well worth considering as the science continues to be worked out. For a detailed Table of Contents of this well-organized work, see the Search-Inside function. Here are just the main headings:Foreword.- Preface.- Setting the Scene.- The Philosophical Background: Einstein and Mach.- Einstein and Quantum Theory: The Early Years.- Quantum Theory and its Obvious Problems.- The Standard Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics.- Interlude.-Einstein Confronting Quantum Theory from 1925.-Einstein’s Approaches to Quantum Theory 1925-1935.- EPR and its Aftermath.- Einstein and the Macroscopic Limit of Quantum Mechanics.- Summary of Einstein’s views.- Interlude.- Denouement.- Bell’s Contributions and Quantum Nonlocality.- Non-Standard Quantum Interpretations.- Einstein and Quantum Information Theory.- Bridging the Quantum-Classical Divide.- Interlude.-Looking Forward.-Quantum Foundations: General Outlook.-Assessment of Einstein’s Views and Contribution.-Epilogue

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