Measurement and Decoherence in the MID/QC Substrate (Double-slit) — Part I

This paper develops the MID/QC interpretation of measurement and decoherence using the double‑slit experiment as the foundational case study. In the MID/QC framework, quantum behavior arises from coherence wells in a substrate tension field, and measurement corresponds to a physical perturbation that disrupts or merges these wells. The double‑slit geometry provides a clean setting to analyze how coherence structures form, interfere, and collapse. Decoherence emerges from gradient interference, tension‑flow interactions, and phase misalignment between local coherence minima. This substrate‑level mechanism produces classical outcomes without invoking abstract projection or symbolic wavefunction collapse. Part I introduces the core concepts: coherence wells, substrate perturbation, gradient‑driven decoherence, and the physical mechanism underlying measurement. Later parts will extend the analysis to delayed‑choice configurations, quantum eraser setups, and general measurement architectures.