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Compendium of Quantum Physics pp 199–201Cite as

Ensembles in Quantum Mechanics

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The attempt to conceive the quantum-theoretical description as the complete description of the individual systems leads to unnatural theoretical interpretations, which immediately become unnecessary if one accepts the interpretation that the description refers to ensembles of systems and not to individual systems. — Albert Einstein (1879–1955) [1], p. 671.

This quotation is perhaps the most famous statement of the ensemble interpretation of quantum mechanics. The role of the ensemble in quantum mechanics ranges from innocuous to profound, and even controversial.

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Primary Literature

  1. A. Einstein: in Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist, ed. P. A. Schilpp (Harper & Row, New York), 665–88 (1949).

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  2. E. Schrödinger: Die gegenwärtige Situation in der Quantenmechanik, Naturwissenschaften. 23, 807–12, 823–28, 844–49 (1935); english translation, The Present Situation in Quantum Mechanics, in Wheeler and Zurek (1983), 152–67.

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  3. J. A. Wheeler and W. H. Zurek: Quantum Theory and Measurement. (Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ) (1983).

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  4. L. E. Ballentine: The Statistical Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics. Rev. Mod. Phys. 42, 358–81 (1970).

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  5. L. E. Ballentine: Quantum Mechanics: A Modern Development. (World Scientific, Singapore) (1998).

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Secondary Literature

  1. D. Home, M. A. B. Whitaker: Ensemble Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics. Phys. Rep. 210(4), 223–317 (1992).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C., Canada

    Leslie E Ballentine

Authors
  1. Leslie E Ballentine
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, The City College of New York, 138th St. & Convent Ave., New York, NY, 10031, USA

    Daniel Greenberger

  2. Section for the History of Science & Technology, University of Stuttgart, Keplerstr. 17, Stuttgart, D-70174, Germany

    Klaus Hentschel

  3. Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Bradford, Bradford, BD7 1DP, UK

    Friedel Weinert

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© 2009 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Ballentine, L.E. (2009). Ensembles in Quantum Mechanics. In: Greenberger, D., Hentschel, K., Weinert, F. (eds) Compendium of Quantum Physics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70626-7_63

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-70626-7_63

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-70622-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-70626-7

  • eBook Packages: Physics and AstronomyPhysics and Astronomy (R0)

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