The Ontology of Bohmian Mechanics

British Journal for the Philosophy of Science 65 (4):773-796 (2014)
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Abstract

The paper points out that the modern formulation of Bohm’s quantum theory known as Bohmian mechanics is committed only to particles’ positions and a law of motion. We explain how this view can avoid the open questions that the traditional view faces according to which Bohm’s theory is committed to a wave-function that is a physical entity over and above the particles, although it is defined on configuration space instead of three-dimensional space. We then enquire into the status of the law of motion, elaborating on how the main philosophical options to ground a law of motion, namely Humeanism and dispositionalism, can be applied to Bohmian mechanics. In conclusion, we sketch out how these options apply to primitive ontology approaches to quantum mechanics in general.

Author Profiles

Dustin Lazarovici
Technion, Israel Institute of Technology
Mario Hubert
American University in Cairo
Michael Esfeld
University of Lausanne

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