Information Transfer Implies State Collapse

Abstract

We attempt to clarify certain puzzles concerning state collapse and decoherence. In open quantum systems decoherence is shown to be a necessary consequence of the transfer of information to the outside; we prove an upper bound for the amount of coherence which can survive such a transfer. We claim that in large closed systems decoherence has never been observed, but we will show that it is usually harmless to assume its occurrence. An independent postulate of state collapse over and above Schroedinger's equation and the probability interpretation of quantum states, is shown to be redundant.