The CSL Collapse Model and Spontaneous Radiation: An Update

A brief review is given of the continuous spontaneous localization (CSL ) model , in which a classical field interacts with quantized particles to cause dynamical wavefunction collapse. One of the model ’s predictions is that particles `̀ spontaneously’’ gain energy at a slow rate. When applied to the excitation of a nucleon in a Ge nucleus, it is shown how a limit on the relative collapse rates of neutron and proton can be obtained, and a rough estimate is made from data. When applied to the spontaneous excitation of 1s electrons in Ge, by a more detailed analysis of more accurate data than given previously, an updated limit is obtained on the relative collapse rates of the electron and proton, suggesting that the coupling of the field to electrons and nucleons is mass proportional .