Researchers supported by the Foundational Questions Institute have published findings in Physical Review Research examining alternatives to standard quantum mechanics known as quantum collapse models. The study, led by Nicola Bortolotti of the Enrico Fermi Museum and Research Centre in Rome, explored how these models might affect the nature of time and the precision limits of clocks.
Standard quantum mechanics describes how a quantum system’s wavefunction collapses into a definite state when measured or observed. However, quantum collapse models propose that collapse can occur spontaneously without requiring measurement. The international team, including researchers from institutions in Italy and Hungary, investigated two specific collapse models: the Diósi-Penrose model, which proposes gravity plays a role in quantum collapse, and Continuous Spontaneous Localization. The researchers established for the first time a quantitative connection between the latter model and gravitational fluctuations in spacetime.
The calculations yielded a significant theoretical conclusion: if these collapse models are correct, time itself should contain a very small intrinsic uncertainty, suggesting a fundamental limit to how precisely time can be measured. However, this predicted effect is extraordinarily small—many orders of magnitude below what can currently be measured. According to the research team, even the most advanced atomic clocks today or those expected in the foreseeable future would lack the precision to detect this effect, meaning modern timekeeping technologies remain entirely unaffected.
The work addresses one of physics’ central unsolved problems: reconciling quantum mechanics with Einstein’s general theory of relativity. These two foundational theories treat time fundamentally differently, and physicists have long sought a deeper theory uniting them. The findings suggest collapse models may contain clues about how quantum physics, gravity, and time could ultimately fit together. Since collapse models predict measurable effects differing from standard quantum mechanics, extremely precise experiments could eventually help determine whether these alternative theories reflect reality. The research demonstrates that unconventional ideas about quantum mechanics can be tested against precise physical measurements.
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