An Appropriate Probability Model for the Bell Experiment

Abstract: The Bell inequality constrains the outcomes of measurements on pairs of distant entangled particles. The Bell contradiction states that the Bell inequality is inconsistent with the calculated outcomes of these quantum experiments. This contradiction led many to question the underlying assumptions, viz. so-called realism and locality. This paper proposes an appropriate probability model for the Bell experiment. This model has only two simultaneously observable detector settings per measurement, and therefore does not assume realism. It is in full agreement with both quantum mechanics and experiments. In this model the expectation for a particular pair of observations is partial to the selected detector settings. This leads to a slightly different variant of the Bell inequality, one that is consistent with both quantum mechanics and measurements. In this model there is no Bell contradiction. Furthermore, the proposed probability model is statistically local, is not factorizable, and is not Bell-separable. The latter implies that either hidden variables must be ruled out, or that locality must be violated. Thus, our conclusion agrees with Bell's conclusion.