相关论文: There is no "first" quantization

Conventional quantum field theory is a method for studying structureless elementary particles. Non-elementary particles, on the other hand, are those with internal structure or particles that are made up of elementary constituents like the…

From one point of view in the quantum theory of fields, free quantum fields are uniquely determined, not by field equations, but by the transformations of the field and the annihilation and creation operators from which the field is…

The challenges posed by the development of field theories, both classical and quantum, force us to question their most basic and foundational ideas like the role and origin of space-time, the meaning of physical states, etc. Among them the…

In classical theory, the physical systems are elucidated through the concepts of particles and waves, which aim to describe the reality of the physical system with certainty. In this framework, particles are mathematically represented by…

According to classical physics particles are basic building blocks of the world. Classical particles are distinguishable objects, individuated by physical characteristics. By contrast, in quantum mechanics the standard view is that…

The quantization of the electromagnetic field in vacuum is presented without reference to lagrangean quantum field theory. The equal time commutators of the fields are calculated from basic principles. A physical discussion of the…

Elementary particles in quantum mechanics (QM) are indistinguishable when sharing the same intrinsic properties and the same quantum state. So, we can consider quantum particles as non-individuals, although non-individuality is usually…

We discuss various definitions of decoherence and how it can be measured. We compare and contrast decoherence in quantum systems with an infinite number of eigenstates (such as the free particle and the oscillator) and spin systems. In the…

This paper introduces a comprehensive formalism for decomposing the state space of a quantum field into several entangled subobjects, i.e., fields generating a subspace of states. Projecting some of the subobjects onto degenerate background…

An inconsistency of quantum field theory, regarding the signs of vacuum energy and vacuum pressure of elementary fields versus non-elementary fields (like e.g. phonon fields), is pointed out. An improved law for the canonical quantization…

Relativistic quantum mechanics can be considered to have begun with a search for wave equations corresponding to each intrinsic spin. However, relativistic quantum physics differs fundamentally from the non-relativistic wave mechanics. It…

In physical theories, boundary or initial conditions play the role of selecting special situations which can be described by a theory with its general laws. Cosmology has long been suspected to be different in that its fundamental theory…

Using tangent bundle geometry we construct an equivalent reformulation of classical field theory on flat spacetimes which simultaneously encodes the perspectives of multiple observers. Its generalization to curved spacetimes realizes a new…

Philosophical reflection on quantum field theory has tended to focus on how it revises our conception of what a particle is. However, there has been relatively little discussion of the threat to the "reality" of particles posed by the…

A remarkable feature of quantum theory is that particles with identical intrinsic properties must be treated as indistinguishable if the theory is to give valid predictions. In the quantum formalism, indistinguishability is expressed via…

Spin is commonly thought to reflect the true quantum nature of microphysics. We show that spin is related to intrinsic and field-like properties of single particles. These properties change continuously in external magnetic fields.…

We consider a quantum theory based on a Galois field. In this approach infinities cannot exist, the cosmological constant problem does not arise, and one irreducible representation (IR) of the symmetry algebra splits into independent IRs…

The q-field theories are constructed by substituting quantum groups for the usual Lie groups. In earlier papers this construction was carried out for the quantum group SU_q(2). Here the investigation is extended to SL_q(3). The resulting…

The third quantization formalism of quantum cosmology adds simplicity and conceptual insight into the quantum description of the multiverse. Within such a formalism, the existence of squeezed and entangled states raises the question of…

At the primary level of reality as described by quantum field theory, a fundamental particle like an electron represents a stable, discrete, propagating excited state of its underlying quantum field. QFT also tells us that the lowest vacuum…