Why we don't need quantum planetary dynamics

decoherence and the correspondence principle for chaotic systems

Wojciech Hubert Zurek

pp. 167-177

in: Daniel Greenberger, Anton Zeilinger (eds), Epistemological and experimental perspectives on quantum physics, Berlin, Springer, 1999

Abstract

Is the correspondence principle valid for quantum systems whose classical counterparts are chaotic? This question has been at the center of a debate that has taken place in recent years within the community of scientists interested in quantum chaos [4,17–20,33]. In this paper we will argue that the apparent failure of the correspondence principle is cured by decoherence, which is an essential ingredient to properly define a classical limit. We shall begin by schematically presenting the problem. Subsequently, we shall sketch the solution provided by decoherence.