Quantum electrodynamics on a space-time lattice

A Minkowski-lattice version of quantum electrodynamics (or rather its simplified version, with matter described by a scalar field) is constructed. Quantum fields are consequently described in a gauge-independent way, i.e. the algebra of quantum observables of the theory is generated by gauge-invariant operators assigned to zero-, one-, and two-dimensional elements of the lattice. The operators satisfy canonical commutation relations. The uniqueness of representation of this algebra is proved. Field dynamics is formulated in terms of difference equations imposed on the field operators. It is obtained from a discrete version of the path-integral. The theory is local and causal.     

Measurements and mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics

A scheme for constructing quantum mechanics is given that does not have Hilbert space and linear operators as its basic elements. Instead, a version of algebraic approach is considered. Elements of a noncommutative algebra (observables) and functionals on this algebra (elementary states) associated with results of single measurements are used as primary components of the scheme. On the one hand, it is possible to use within the scheme the formalism of the standard (Kolmogorov) probability theory, and, on the other hand, it is possible to reproduce the mathematical formalism of standard quantum mechanics, and to study the limits of its applicability. A short outline is given of the necessary material from the theory of algebras and probability theory. It is described how the mathematical scheme of the paper agrees with the theory of quantum measurements, and avoids quantum paradoxes.     

Copenhagen quantum mechanics

In our quantum mechanics courses, measurement is usually taught in passing, as an ad-hoc procedure involving the ugly collapse of the wave function. No wonder we search for more satisfying alternatives to the Copenhagen interpretation. But this overlooks the fact that the approach fits very well with modern measurement theory with its notions of the conditioned state and quantum trajectory. In addition, what we know of as the Copenhagen interpretation is a later 1950s development and some of the earlier pioneers like Bohr did not talk of wave function collapse. In fact, if one takes these earlier ideas and mixes them with later insights of decoherence, a much more satisfying version of Copenhagen quantum mechanics emerges, one for which the collapse of the wave function is seen to be a harmless book keeping device. Along the way, we explain why chaotic systems lead to wave functions that spread out quickly on macroscopic scales implying that Schrödinger cat states are the norm rather than curiosities generated in physicists’ laboratories. We then describe how the conditioned state of a quantum system depends crucially on how the system is monitored illustrating this with the example of a decaying atom monitored with a time of arrival photon detector, leading to Bohr’s quantum jumps. On the other hand, other kinds of detection lead to much smoother behaviour, providing yet another example of complementarity. Finally we explain how classical behaviour emerges, including classical mechanics but also thermodynamics.     

Dual geometric field theory

A Weyl geometry with a gauge-invariant, Riemannian subgeometry is used to geometrize the combined Einstein-Maxwell theory. A generalized Hamilton-Jacobi equation from particle mechanics emerges as an immediate consistency requirement. The time-independent, Coulomb field case is found to include at least lowest-order quantum effects as in wave mechanics. Possible microscopic entropy is identified.Work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy.     

π+π+ and π+π? Colliding in Noncommutative Space

By studying the scattering process of scalar particle pion on the noncommutative scalar quantum electrodynamics, the non-commutative amendment of differential scattering cross-section is found, which is dependent of polar-angle and the results are significantly different from that in the commutative scalar quantum electrodynamics, particularly when cosθ∼±1. The non-commutativity of space is expected to be explored at around Λ_NC∼TeV.     

Merging Higher Derivative Gravity and Quantum Mechanics

The most general quantum mechanical wave equation for a massive scalar particle in a metric generated by a spherically symmetric mass distribution is considered within the framework of higher derivative gravity (HDG). The exact effective Hamiltonian is constructed and the significance of the various terms is discussed using the linearized version of the above-mentioned theory. Not only does this analysis shed new light on the long standing problem of quantum gravity concerning the exact nature of the coupling between a massive scalar field and the background geometry, it also greatly improves our understanding of the role of HDG's coupling parameters in semiclassical calculations.     

Photon Wave Mechanics: A De Broglie-Bohm Approach

We compare the de Broglie-Bohm theory for non-relativistic, scalar matter particles with the Majorana-Römer theory of electrodynamics, pointing out the impressive common peculiarities and the role of the spin in both theories. A novel insight into photon wave mechanics is envisaged.     

The deviation factor and divergences in quantum electrodynamics,concrete examples

We consider the divergences in quantum electrodynamics. Our approach is based on ideas from the theory of generalized wave operators. In particular, we use the concept of the deviation factor. The deviation factor characterizes the deviations of the initial and final waves from the free waves. The approach is demonstrated on important examples.     

Essay: Quantum Field Theory Is Not Merely Quantum Mechanics Applied to Low Energy Effective Degrees of Freedom

It is commonly assumed that quantum field theory arises by applying ordinary quantum mechanics to the low energy effective degrees of freedom of a more fundamental theory defined at ultra-high-energy/short-wavelength scales. We shall argue here that, even for free quantum fields, there are holistic aspects of quantum field theory that cannot be properly understood in this manner. Specifically, the subtractions needed to define nonlinear polynomial functions of a free quantum field in curved spacetime are quite simple and natural from the quantum field theoretic point of view, but are at best extremely ad hoc and unnatural if viewed as independent renormalizations of individual modes of the field. We illustrate this point by contrasting the analysis of the Casimir effect, the renormalization of the stress-energy tensor in time-dependent spacetimes, and anomalies from the point of quantum field theory and from the point of view of quantum mechanics applied to the independent low energy modes of the field. Some implications for the cosmological constant problem are discussed.     

Thermodynamic properties of asymptotically Reissner–Nordström black holes

Motivated by possible relation between Born–Infeld type nonlinear electrodynamics and an effective low-energy action of open string theory, asymptotically Reissner–Nordström black holes whose electric field is described by a nonlinear electrodynamics (NLED) are studied. We take into account a four dimensional topological static black hole ansatz and solve the field equations, exactly, in terms of the NLED as a matter field. The main goal of this paper is investigation of thermodynamic properties of the obtained black holes. Moreover, we calculate the heat capacity and find that the nonlinearity affects the minimum size of stable black holes. We also use Legendre-invariant metric proposed by Quevedo to obtain scalar curvature divergences. We find that the singularities of the Ricci scalar in Geometrothermodynamics (GTD) method take place at the Davies points.     

Photoproduction of Pion Pairs in a Radiation-Dominated Universe. I

Within the framework of scalar quantum electrodynamics (QED) conformally connected with an external gravitational field, the effect of the photoproduction of an arbitrary number of charged massive particle pairs is studied for the quasi-Euclidian model of a radiation-dominated Universe. The total probability of the process is calculated, and the time period during which the given process occurs is determined. The total probability is analyzed and compared with a similar expression obtained in the context of spinor theory. The estimations demonstrate that the total probability of rigid photon decay obtained in the context of scalar theory is by an order of magnitude less than that calculated from the corresponding expression obtained in the context of spinor QED.     

In Appreciation¶The Depth and Breadth of John Bell's Physics

This essay surveys the work of John Stewart Bell, one of the great physicists of the twentieth century. Section 1 is a brief biography, tracing his career from working-class origins and undergraduate training in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to research in accelerator and nuclear physics in the British national laboratories at Harwell and Malvern, to his profound research on elementary particle physics as a member of the Theory Group at CERN and his equally profound "hobby" of investigating the foundations of quantum mechanics. Section 2 concerns this hobby, which began in his discontent with Bohr's and Heisenberg's analyses of the measurement process. He was attracted to the program of hidden variables interpretations, but he revolutionized the foundations of quantum mechanics by a powerful negative result: that no hidden variables theory that is "local" (in a clear and well-motivated sense) can agree with all the correlations predicted by quantum mechanics regarding well-separated systems. He further deepened the foundations of quantum mechanics by penetrating conceptual analyses of results concerning measurement theory of von Neumann, de Broglie and Bohm, Gleason, Jauch and Piron, Everett, and Ghirardi-Rimini-Weber. Bell's work in particle theory (Section 3) began with a proof of the CPT theorem in his doctoral dissertation, followed by investigations of the phenomenology of CP-violating experiments. At CERN Bell investigated the commutation relations in current algebras from various standpoints. The failure of current algebra combined with partially conserved current algebra to permit the experimentally observed decay of the neutral pi-meson into two photons stimulated the discovery by Bell and Jackiw of anomalous or quantal symmetry breaking, which has numerous implications for elementary particle phenomena. Other late investigations of Bell on elementary particle physics were bound states in quantum chromodynamics (in collaboration with Bertlmann) and estimates for the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon (in collaboration with de Rafael). Section 4 concerns accelerations, starting at Harwell with the algebra of strong focusing and the stability of orbits in linear accelerators and synchrotrons. At CERN he continued to contribute to accelerator physics, and with his wife Mary Bell he wrote on electron cooling and Beamstrahlung. A spectacular late achievement in accelerator physics was the demonstration (in collaboration with Leinaas) that the effective black-body radiation seen by an accelerated observer in an electromagnetic vacuum - the "Unruh effect" - had already been observed experimentally in the partial depolarization of electrons traversing circular orbits.     

The supersymmetry extended Weyl algebra and Casalbuoni's G4 model

We briefly review the classical version of Casalbuoni's G₄ supersummetric model (i.e. the single particle version of the scalar chiral supermultiplet) with particular emphasis on the role played by the chirality. We show that the off-mass-shell commutators of the quantum model can be derived from the Lie algebra of the Weyl (i.e. Poincaré plus dilatations) group extended by supersymmetry. The proper-time wavefunctions of the off-mass-shell states satisfy equations which clarify the role of the “auxiliary fields” of quantum field theory.     

Scalar charged particle in the Lorentz gauge

Relativistic quantum mechanics leads to the specification of initial and final conditions for the wave amplitudes and electromagnetic potentials. The interaction between one scalar charged particle and the electromagnetic field has previously been solved by perturbation expansions in the Coulomb gauge. Here the theory is extended to the Lorentz gauge, which requires a different set of initial or final conditions on the potentials.     

Quantum phenomena and the zeropoint radiation field

The stationary solutions for a bound electron immersed in the random zeropoint radiation field of stochastic electrodynamics are studied, under the assumption that the characteristic Fourier frequencies of these solutions are not random. Under this assumption, the response of the particle to the field is linear and does not mix frequencies, irrespectively of the form of the binding force; the fluctuations of the random field fix the scale of the response. The effective radiation field that supports the stationary states of motion is no longer the free vacuum field, but a modified form of it with new statistical properties. The theory is expressed naturally in terms of matrices (or operators), and it leads to the Heisenberg equations and the Hilbert space formalism of quantum mechanics in the radiationless approximation. The connection with the poissonian formulation of stochastic electrodynamics is also established. At the end we briefly discuss a few important aspects of quantum mechanics which the present theory helps to clarify.On leave of absence at Mathematics Department, University College London. Gower Street, London WC1, U.K.     

Quantum Field Theory with a Minimal Length Induced from Noncommutative Space

From the inspection of noncommutative quantum mechanics, we obtain an approximate equivalent relation for the energy dependence of the Planck constant in the noncommutative space, which means a minimal length of the space. We find that this relation is reasonable and it can inherit the main properties of the noncommutative space. Based on this relation, we derive the modified Klein-Gordon equation and Dirac equation. We investigate the scalar field and φ4 model and then quantum electrodynamics in our theory, and derive the corresponding Feynman rules. These results may be considered as reasonable approximations to those of noncommutative quantum field theory. Our theory also shows a connection between the space with a minimal length and the noncommutative space.     

The wave properties of matter and the zeropoint radiation field

The origin of the wave properties of matter is discussed from the point of view of stochastic electrodynamics. A nonrelativistic model of a charged particle with an effective structure embedded in the random zeropoint radiation field reveals that the field induces a high-frequency vibration on the particle; internal consistency of the theory fixes the frequency of this jittering at mc²/. The particle is therefore assumed to interact intensely with stationary zeropoint waves of this frequency as seen from its proper frame of reference; such waves, identified here as de Broglie's phase waves, give rise to a modulated wave in the laboratory frame, with de Broglie's wavelength and phase velocity equal to the particle velocity. The time-independent equation that describes this modulated wave is shown to be the stationary Schrödinger equation (or the Klein-Gordon equation in the relativistic version). In a heuristic analysis appled to simple periodic cases, the quantization rules are recovered from the assumption that for a particle in a stationary state there must correspond a stationary modulation. Along an independent and complementary line of reasoning, an equation for the probability amplitude in configuration space for a particle under a general potential V(x) is constructed, and it is shown that under conditions derived from stochastic electrodynamics it reduces to Schrödinger's equation. This equation reflects therefore the dual nature of the quantum particles, by describing simultaneously the corresponding modulated waveand the ensemble of particles.     

The Foundations of Linear Stochastic Electrodynamics

An analysis is briefly presented of the possible causes of the failure of stochastic electrodynamics (SED) when applied to systems with nonlinear forces, on the basis that the main principles of the theory are correct. In light of this analysis, an alternative approach to the theory is discussed, whose postulates allow to establish contact with quantum mechanics in a natural way. The ensuing theory, linear SED, confirms the essential role of the vacuum–particle interaction as the source of quantum phenomena.