Property lattices for independent quantum systems

Abstract

We consider the description of two independent quantum systems by a complete atomistic ortho-lattice (cao-lattice) L. It is known that since the two systems are independent, no Hilbert space description is possible, i.e. $L\ne P(H)$, the lattice of closed subspaces of a Hilbert space (theorem 1). We impose five conditions on L. Four of them are shown to be physically necessary. The last one relates the orthogonality between states in each system to the ortho-complementation of L. It can be justified if one assumes that the orthogonality between states in the total system induces the ortho-complementation of L. We prove that if L satisfies these five conditions, then L is the separated product proposed by Aerts in 1982 to describe independent quantum systems (theorem 2). Finally, we give strong arguments to exclude the separated product and therefore our last condition. As a consequence, we ask whether among the ca-lattices that satisfy our first four basic necessary conditions, there exists an ortho-complemented one different from the separated product.