Quantum Mechanics and Information Retrieval

In this chapter, we describe how the intersection between information retrieval and the quantum mechanical framework has been implemented. We select and present in no predefined order the most significant contributions to the implementation of this intersection; some contributions appear to be less mature than others; however, we decided to include them since they are sources of future work. Other contributions might appear less “quantum inspired” than others; however, each research work contains concepts and tools that are somehow linked to the quantum mechanical framework illustrated in the book. In the end, the contributions reported in this chapter cover a wide range of issues, from modeling issues to user interaction issues. The chapter ends with suggestions of further reading.