Quantum statistical gravity: time dilation due to local information in many-body quantum systems

Abstract

We propose a generic mechanism for the emergence of a gravitational potential that acts on all classical objects in a quantum system. Our conjecture is based on the analysis of mutual information in many-body quantum systems. Since measurements in quantum systems affect the surroundings through entanglement, a measurement at one position reduces the entropy in its neighbourhood. This reduction in entropy can be described by a local temperature, that is directly related to the gravitational potential. A crucial ingredient in our argument is that ideal classical mechanical motion occurs at constant probability. This definition is motivated by the analysis of entropic forces in classical systems, which can be formally rewritten in terms of a gravitational potential.