Pointer states: localized states surviving decoherence
Zurek's Einselection & Pointer States —
Decoherence destroys superpositions via entanglement with the environment. Only
pointer states (eigenstates of the system-environment interaction Hamiltonian) survive:
they are dynamically robust. The density matrix ρ(x,x') loses off-diagonal coherences at rate
γ|x−x'|², leaving a mixture of localized pointer states. This einselection (environment-induced superselection)
explains the quantum-to-classical transition without wavefunction collapse.