Residuation in finite posets

When an algebraic logic based on a poset instead of a lattice is investigated then there is a natural problem how to introduce implication to be everywhere defined and satisfying (left) adjointness with conjunction. We have already studied this problem for the logic of quantum mechanics which is based on an orthomodular poset or the logic of quantum effects based on a so-called effect algebra which is only partial and need not be lattice-ordered. For this, we introduced the so-called operator residuation where the values of implication and conjunction need not be elements of the underlying poset, but only certain subsets of it. However, this approach can be generalized for posets satisfying more general conditions. If these posets are even finite, we can focus on maximal or minimal elements of the corresponding subsets and the formulas for the mentioned operators can be essentially simplified. This is shown in the present paper where all theorems are explained by corresponding examples.

The logic of orthomodular posets of finite height

Orthomodular posets form an algebraic formalization of the logic of quantum mechanics. A central question is how to introduce implication in such a logic. We give a positive answer whenever the orthomodular poset in question is of finite height. The crucial advantage of our solution is that the corresponding algebra, called implication orthomodular poset, i.e. a poset equipped with a binary operator of implication, corresponds to the original orthomodular poset and that its implication operator is everywhere defined. We present here a complete list of axioms for implication orthomodular posets. This enables us to derive an axiomatization in Gentzen style for the algebraizable logic of orthomodular posets of finite height.

Sublattices and Δ-blocks of orthomodular posets

States of quantum systems correspond to vectors in a Hilbert space and observations to closed subspaces. Hence, this logic corresponds to the algebra of closed subspaces of a Hilbert space. This can be considered as a complete lattice with orthocomplementation, but it is not distributive. It satisfies a weaker condition, the so-called orthomodularity. Later on, it was recognized that joins in this structure need not exist provided the subspaces are not orthogonal. Hence, the resulting structure need not be a lattice but a so-called orthomodular poset, more generally an orthoposet only. For orthoposets, we introduce a binary relation $\mathrel \Delta$ and a binary operator $d(x,y)$ that are generalizations of the binary relation $\textrm{C}$ and the commutator $c(x,y)$, respectively, known for orthomodular lattices. We characterize orthomodular posets among orthogonal posets. Moreover, we describe connections between the relations $\mathrel \Delta$ and $\leftrightarrow$ (the latter was introduced by P. Pták and S. Pulmannová) and the operator $d(x,y)$. In addition, we investigate certain orthomodular posets of subsets of a finite set. In particular, we describe maximal orthomodular sublattices and Boolean subalgebras of such orthomodular posets. Finally, we study properties of $\Delta$-blocks with respect to Boolean subalgebras and distributive subposets they include.

How to introduce the connective implication in orthomodular posets

Since orthomodular posets serve as an algebraic axiomatization of the logic of quantum mechanics, it is a natural question how the connective of implication can be defined in this logic. It should be introduced in such a way that it is related with conjunction, i.e. with the partial operation meet, by means of some kind of adjointness. We present here such an implication for which a so-called unsharp residuated poset can be constructed. Then this implication is connected with the operation meet by the so-called unsharp adjointness. We prove that also conversely, under some additional assumptions, such an unsharp residuated poset can be converted into an orthomodular poset and that this assignment is nearly one-to-one.

Residuated operators in complemented posets

Using the operators of taking upper and lower cones in a poset with a unary operation, we define operators [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] in the sense of multiplication and residuation, respectively, and we show that by using these operators, a general modification of residuation can be introduced. A relatively pseudocomplemented poset can be considered as a prototype of such an operator residuated poset. As main results, we prove that every Boolean poset as well as every pseudo-orthomodular poset can be organized into a (left) operator residuated structure. Some results on pseudo-orthomodular posets are presented which show the analogy to orthomodular lattices and orthomodular posets.

Wigner's theorem for an infinite set

It is well known that the closed subspaces of a Hilbert space form an orthomodular lattice. Elements of this orthomodular lattice are the propositions of a quantum mechanical system represented by the Hilbert space, and by Gleason’s theorem atoms of this orthomodular lattice correspond to pure states of the system. Wigner’s theorem says that the automorphism group of this orthomodular lattice corresponds to the group of unitary and anti-unitary operators of the Hilbert space. This result is of basic importance in the use of group representations in quantum mechanics. The closed subspaces A of a Hilbert space ${\mathcal H}$ correspond to direct product decompositions $\mathcal{H}\simeq A\times A^\perp$ of the Hilbert space, a result that lies at the heart of the superposition principle. In [10] it was shown that the direct product decompositions of any set, group, vector space, and topological space form an orthomodular poset. This is the basis for a line of study in foundational quantum mechanics replacing Hilbert spaces with other types of structures. It is the purpose of this note to prove a version of Wigner’s theorem: for an infinite set X, the automorphism group of the orthomodular poset Fact(X) of direct product decompositions of X is isomorphic to the permutation group of X. The structure Fact(X) plays the role for direct product decompositions of a set that the lattice of equivalence relations plays for surjective images of a set. So determining its automorphism group is of interest independent of its application to quantum mechanics. Other properties of Fact(X) are determined in proving our version of Wigner’s theorem, namely that Fact(X) is atomistic in a very strong way.

Weakly orthomodular and dually weakly orthomodular posets

Orthomodular posets form an algebraic semantic for the logic of quantum mechanics. We show several methods how to construct orthomodular posets via a representation within the powerset of a given set. Further, we generalize this concept to the concept of weakly orthomodular and dually weakly orthomodular posets where the complementation need not be antitone or an involution. We show several interesting examples of such posets and prove which intervals of these posets are weakly orthomodular or dually weakly orthomodular again. To every (dually) weakly orthomodular poset can be assigned an algebra with total operations, a so-called (dually) weakly orthomodular [Formula: see text]-lattice. We study properties of these [Formula: see text]-lattices and show that the variety of these [Formula: see text]-lattices has nice congruence properties.