The Perspectives of Non-Ideal Quantum Reference Frames

Abstract: We define the perspective of any quantum reference frame (QRF) and construct reversible transformations between different perspectives. This extends the framework of [arXiv:2110.13199] to non-ideal QRFs with finite resources such as energy or angular momentum. We derive a QRF's perspective starting from two physically motivated principles, leading to an incoherent group averaging approach. The perspective of a non-ideal QRF deviates significantly from that of a more intuitive ideal frame with infinite resources: Firstly, systems described relative to the QRF appear superselected. Secondly, the structure of the QRF perspective attests that successive operations on a system relative to the QRF leads to back-reaction onto the QRF due to its non-ideality.