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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 25, 2025

Quantum State Engineering of Light with Continuous-wave Optical Parametric Oscillators

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Published on: May 30, 2014

Experimental Refutation of Real-Valued Quantum Mechanics under Strict Locality Conditions.

Dian Wu^1,2,3, Yang-Fan Jiang⁴, Xue-Mei Gu^1,2,3

¹Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Physical Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.

Physical Review Letters

|October 14, 2022

Summary

This study experimentally disproves real-valued quantum mechanics. The findings confirm the essential role of complex numbers in accurately describing quantum phenomena.

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Area of Science:

Quantum Physics
Foundations of Quantum Mechanics

Background:

Quantum mechanics traditionally uses complex Hilbert spaces, but the necessity of complex numbers has been debated.
Distinguishing standard quantum mechanics from real-valued analogs is crucial for understanding its fundamental nature.

Purpose of the Study:

To experimentally test whether quantum mechanics requires complex numbers.
To distinguish between standard quantum mechanics and a hypothetical real-valued version.

Main Methods:

Implementation of a Bell-like test in an entanglement-swapping scenario.
Utilizing two independent entangled photon sources and three spatially separated parties.
Enforcing strict locality conditions via spacelike separation, rapid random setting generation, and fast measurements.

Main Results:

Violation of real-valued quantum mechanics constraints by 5.30 standard deviations.
Simultaneous closure of loopholes related to independent sources, locality, and measurement independence.
Experimental evidence against real-valued quantum theory.

Conclusions:

Real-valued quantum theory is disproven as a description of nature.
Complex numbers are indispensable for a complete formulation of quantum mechanics.