Anomalous nonlocality of information masked in quantum correlations

Guang Ping He

arxiv: 2604.16951 · v1 · submitted 2026-04-18 · 🪐 quant-ph

Anomalous nonlocality of information masked in quantum correlations

Guang Ping He This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-05-10 06:53 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification 🪐 quant-ph

keywords quantum correlationsnonlocalityinformation carrierquantum informationnonlocal dispatchspecial relativityno-signaling

0 comments

The pith

Quantum correlations as information carriers allow willful instantaneous choice to decode locally or dispatch to a distant site without classical signals.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper proposes that quantum correlations, when serving as carriers for either quantum or classical information, enable a distinctive form of nonlocality. An observer can freely decide whether to decode the information at their own location or relinquish that option so the information becomes decodable only at a remote location. This decision requires no classical communication and happens without any delay, yet no actual superluminal signaling occurs and special relativity remains intact. The effect stands apart from ordinary quantum nonlocality of particles, where location is governed by uncontrollable uncertainty rather than deliberate selection.

Core claim

Although information requires physical carriers that cannot exceed light speed, quantum correlations used as such carriers exhibit a nonlocality permitting an observer to select at will whether to decode the information at one location or dispatch it to another far away without needing classical information, so the choice occurs instantaneously without violating the speed of light; this differs from particle nonlocality, where detection location is governed by quantum uncertainty that cannot be chosen freely.

What carries the argument

Quantum correlations functioning as carriers of information, which support a nonlocal choice between local decoding and remote dispatch.

If this is right

The location where information can be decoded can be selected or reassigned instantaneously by the choice to decode or not decode locally.
No classical communication is needed to enact the selection or dispatch.
Superluminal signaling remains impossible, so special relativity is preserved.
Both quantum and classical information can exhibit this behavior when carried by quantum correlations.
The phenomenon is distinct from particle nonlocality because the choice is deliberate rather than uncertain.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

This framing might allow construction of quantum protocols in which control over information accessibility is exercised without measurement-induced collapse.
It suggests possible links to no-signaling constraints that could be tested in standard entangled-state experiments.
If the mechanism holds, it could be extended to multipartite correlations to explore multi-site dispatch choices.

Load-bearing premise

Quantum correlations can serve as carriers that permit a free, instantaneous choice of decoding location while still forbidding any superluminal signaling.

What would settle it

A demonstration that any such choice of decode-or-dispatch always requires an accompanying classical signal or reduces to probabilistic uncertainty rather than willful control would falsify the central claim.

Figures

Figures reproduced from arXiv: 2604.16951 by Guang Ping He.

read the original abstract

Although information, strictly speaking, is not a physical entity, it generally requires physical entities as its carriers, e.g., writing it down on paper, encoding it with quantum particles, or transmitting it using electro-magnetic fields. And it seems natural that these carriers cannot travel faster than light. Here we reveal that if we use quantum correlations as the carrier of information (either quantum or classical), then it can display a kind of nonlocality, which bears both similarities to and distinctions from the nonlocality of physical particles. Notably, though superluminal signaling is still not allowed so that the special relativity is not violated, it is possible to select at our will whether to decode the information at one location, or to dispatch it to another location far away (i.e., to give up the chance of decoding the information and let it be decodable in somewhere else only) without needing the assistance of classical information, so that it occurs instantaneously without being limited by the speed of light. This phenomenon differs sharply from the nonlocality of physical particles that we once knew, where whether a particle can be detected in one location or another is governed by quantum uncertainty, which cannot be chosen freely.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Desk Editor's Note private letter to a colleague

The paper claims quantum correlations let you choose the decoding location for information instantaneously without classical help, but this runs straight into the no-communication theorem.

read the letter

The main thing to know is that the author wants to treat quantum correlations as carriers that allow a free, instantaneous choice of where information gets decoded, either locally or at a distant site, while still claiming no superluminal signaling occurs. This is pitched as a distinct form of nonlocality from the usual particle version, where detection is governed by uncertainty rather than choice. The distinction between physical particles and information masked in correlations is drawn clearly enough to be noticed, even if the execution does not land. The paper does at least try to separate the carrier from the information itself and notes that correlations might behave differently than particles in terms of location control. That framing is the part that could prompt a reader to think again about how we describe where information actually sits in an entangled state. The central problem is that the claimed choice requires a local action to alter what the distant party can decode, and to do so without any classical bit being sent. Standard quantum mechanics keeps the distant reduced density matrix unchanged by local operations, so the other party cannot experience a different decoding option based on your decision. The paper repeats that signaling remains forbidden, yet the description of willful selection and dispatch still needs the choice to take effect at a distance. This is the inconsistency the stress-test note identifies, and nothing in the abstract shows a concrete protocol or derivation that avoids it. If the full paper contains a specific example with calculations that keeps the distant state invariant while still making the choice effective, that would need to be shown explicitly. As written, the argument does not clear that basic consistency check. This is the sort of foundations piece that might interest a small group working on information concepts in quantum correlations. A reader could pull the particle-versus-information split as a discussion starter, but the lack of a working mechanism means there is little to build on or cite. I would not bring it to a reading group or reference it. It does not look ready for peer review because the load-bearing claim contradicts a core theorem without resolving the tension.

Referee Report

2 major / 0 minor

Summary. The paper claims that quantum correlations, when used as carriers of information (classical or quantum), exhibit an 'anomalous nonlocality' allowing a party to freely and instantaneously choose—without classical communication—whether to decode the information locally or dispatch it for decoding only at a distant site. This choice is said to occur faster than light yet without enabling superluminal signaling, distinguishing it from the nonlocality of physical particles governed by quantum uncertainty.

Significance. If the central claim were correct and consistent with quantum mechanics, it would represent a novel form of information nonlocality with potential implications for quantum communication protocols. However, the manuscript provides no mathematical framework, explicit protocols, or derivations in the abstract, and the described mechanism appears to conflict with the no-communication theorem.

major comments (2)

[Abstract] Abstract: The assertion that one can 'select at our will whether to decode the information at one location, or to dispatch it to another location far away ... without needing the assistance of classical information' implies that a local choice (e.g., measurement or not) controllably alters the distant party's decoding capability. This contradicts the no-communication theorem, as any local operation leaves the distant reduced density matrix invariant, preventing the distant party from obtaining information about the choice without classical bits.
[Abstract] Abstract: The claim distinguishes this 'nonlocality of information' from particle nonlocality by asserting free choice of decoding location, yet provides no concrete protocol, state preparation, or measurement scheme demonstrating how the selection occurs while preserving the invariance of reduced states. Without such details, the central claim cannot be verified against standard quantum mechanics.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

2 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for their thorough review and constructive comments on our manuscript arXiv:2604.16951. We address the major concerns regarding potential conflict with the no-communication theorem and the need for explicit protocols. Our responses clarify that the proposed nonlocality does not enable superluminal signaling, consistent with quantum mechanics, while highlighting the novel aspect of information carrier nonlocality.

read point-by-point responses

Referee: The assertion that one can 'select at our will whether to decode the information at one location, or to dispatch it to another location far away ... without needing the assistance of classical information' implies that a local choice (e.g., measurement or not) controllably alters the distant party's decoding capability. This contradicts the no-communication theorem, as any local operation leaves the distant reduced density matrix invariant, preventing the distant party from obtaining information about the choice without classical bits.

Authors: We agree that the no-communication theorem holds and that local operations cannot alter the distant reduced density matrix. Our manuscript does not claim otherwise. The local choice of decoding or dispatching does not provide the distant party with any information about the choice itself, as they cannot distinguish the scenarios without classical communication. The anomalous nonlocality pertains to the freedom in selecting the decoding location using the quantum correlations as the information carrier, which is instantaneous in the sense that no classical signal is needed for the choice, yet no actual information is transmitted superluminally. This is distinct from particle nonlocality. We will revise the abstract and add a clarifying paragraph in the introduction to emphasize this point. revision: partial
Referee: The claim distinguishes this 'nonlocality of information' from particle nonlocality by asserting free choice of decoding location, yet provides no concrete protocol, state preparation, or measurement scheme demonstrating how the selection occurs while preserving the invariance of reduced states. Without such details, the central claim cannot be verified against standard quantum mechanics.

Authors: The full text of the manuscript discusses the mechanism in terms of quantum correlations and how the choice is implemented. However, to facilitate verification, we will include an explicit protocol, including a specific entangled state, the encoding of information, and the local measurement choices that allow the sender to select the decoding location while keeping reduced states invariant. This addition will be made in a new section or appendix in the revised manuscript. revision: yes

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No circularity: conceptual claim grounded in standard QM without self-referential reduction

full rationale

The paper's central claim—that quantum correlations as information carriers permit willful instantaneous selection of decoding location without classical assistance—is presented as a direct revelation from the properties of quantum correlations. No equations, fitted parameters, or derivations appear in the abstract or provided text that reduce the result to its own inputs by construction. No self-citations, ansatzes, or uniqueness theorems are invoked in a load-bearing way. The derivation chain, to the extent visible, remains self-contained against external benchmarks such as the no-communication theorem (which the paper explicitly acknowledges is not violated). This is the normal honest outcome for a conceptual paper without explicit mathematical reductions.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 2 axioms · 1 invented entities

The paper's claim relies on the domain assumption that information can be carried by quantum correlations and the standard no-signaling condition from quantum mechanics. No free parameters or new physical entities are introduced in the abstract.

axioms (2)

domain assumption Quantum correlations can serve as carriers of information
The paper assumes this to discuss nonlocality of information.
standard math No superluminal signaling is allowed
To not violate special relativity.

invented entities (1)

Nonlocality of information no independent evidence
purpose: To describe the selectable decoding phenomenon distinct from particle nonlocality
This is a conceptual entity introduced to distinguish from particle nonlocality.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.0 · 5499 in / 1450 out tokens · 61612 ms · 2026-05-10T06:53:35.495684+00:00 · methodology

discussion (0)

Reference graph

Works this paper leans on

12 extracted references · 12 canonical work pages

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work page 2018

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X. -B. Liang, B. Li, and S. -M. Fei, Phys. Rev. A 100, 030304(R) (2019). Complete characterization of qubit masking

work page 2019

[3] [3]

Z. -H. Liu, X. -B. Liang, K. Sun, Q. Li, Y. Meng, M. Yang, B. Li, J. -L. Chen, J. -S. Xu, C. -F. Li, and G. -C. Guo, Phys. Rev. Lett. 126(17), 170505 (2021). Photonic implementation of quantum information masking

work page 2021

[4] [4]

M. -S. Li and Y. -L. Wang, Phys. Rev. A 98, 062306 (2018). Masking quantum information in multipartite scenario

work page 2018

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K. Y. Han, Z. H. Guo, H. X. Cao, Y. X. Du, and C. Yang, EPL 131, 3 (2020). Quantum multipartite maskers vs. quantum error-correcting codes

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Z. -F. Liu, et al., Commun. Phys. 8, 30 (2025). Experi- mental demonstration of complete quantum information masking and generalization of quantum secret sharing

work page 2025

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Yamaguchi and A

K. Yamaguchi and A. Kempf, Phys. Rev. Lett. 136(1), 010801 (2026). Encrypted qubits can be cloned

work page 2026

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Experimental demonstration that qubits can be cloned at will, if encrypted with a single-use decryption key.preprint arXiv:2602.10695, 2026

K. Yamaguchi, L. Rullk¨ otter, I. Shehzad, S. J. Wagner, C. Tutschku, and A. Kempf, arXiv:2602.10695. Experi- mental demonstration that qubits can be cloned at will, if encrypted with a single-use decryption key

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C. H. Bennett, G. Brassard, C. Cr´ epeau, R. Jozsa, A. Peres, and W. K. Wootters, Phys. Rev. Lett. 70, 1895 (1993). Teleporting an unknown quantum state via dual classical and Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen channels

work page 1993

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S. H. Lie and H. Jeong, Phys. Rev. A 101(5), 052322 (2020). Randomness cost of masking quantum informa- tion and the information conservation law

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W. H. Zurek, Nat. Phys. 5, 181 (2009). Quantum Dar- winism

work page 2009