On the Influence of Observation of the Processes in Quantum Systems: Is it Possible to Determine an Observer Effect in Biological Systems?

Abstract

Abstract—The issue of how observation of a process in quantum mechanics may influence its outcome is described by case studies of quantum emission by a two-level system and the passage of a particle through a potential barrier. In the first case, the observation can reduce the probability of quantum emission by the two-level system (the quantum Zeno effect). In the second case, the observation of a particle can significantly increase the probability for a particle to pass through a barrier, sometimes even by many orders of magnitude (the barrier anti-Zeno effect). The possibility of such effects in biological systems is discussed.