Quantum mechanics derived from stochastic electrodynamics

The connection between stochastic electrodynamics (SED) and the quantum theory of matter is further explored. The main result is that the Fokker-Planck-like equation of SED can be recast into the form of a Schrödinger equation with radiative corrections, when the system is close to a state of equilibrium. The phase-space distribution can be written as Wigner's pseudo-distribution plus corrections due to the nonlinearity of the external force and to radiative effects. The radiative corrections predicted by the theory, namely the Lamb shift and the decay of excited atomic states, coincide with those predicted by QED. Moreover, the theory offers a clear physical interpretation of these phenomena as due to the coupling of the electric dipole of the system with the zero-point radiation field and to radiation reaction, respectively.     

Finite temperature effects in quantum field theory

We consider quantum electrodynamics at finite temperatures. By making use of the real time formalism we compute, on the one-loop level, the finite-temperature correction to the mass of the electron and to the anomalous magnetic moment a_e^th. The gauge-invariant correction to the electron mass is found to be a ten percent effect at a temperature of the order of 2×10¹⁰ K. Some astrophysical implications of this result are briefly discussed. The leading temperature correction to the anomalous magnetic moment of the electron is, at a temperature of 300 K, found to be one order of magnitude smaller than the τ-lepton contribution to a_e^th.     

Finite temperature field theory with boundaries: The photon field

We calculate the deviations from Planckian form of the photon field finite temperature stress tensor in a manifold with boundary, due to scattering from the boundary. Familiar non-integrable divergences are found in the photon stress tensor as the boundary is approached and these are shown to be an inescapable consequence of initial calculational assumptions. Modifications of these assumptions are discussed which serve to remove the divergences and to illustrate the importance of the role played by surface gravitational actions.     

Finite temperature gluonic gas in a magnetic field

The thermodynamical potential of a neutral gluonic plasma without quarks placed in an external abelian magnetic field is calculated, including its imaginary part, within the one-loop approximation of the temperature Green function method using the proper-time representation. The tachyonic instability of the system is discussed. A temperature at which the magnetic field stabilizes through a phase transition is estimated.     

Finite temperature effective Lagrangian in Yang-Mills field theory

Expressions are derived for the finite temperature effective Lagrangian for particles with spin s=0 and isospin I=1/2, 1 in an external chromomagnetic field. The difference between the Lagrangians obtained and the Euler-Heisenberg Lagrangian of QED is demonstrated.Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 1, pp. 78–81, January, 1985.     

Quantisation of a gauge field in the temporal-like gauge based on stochastic mechanics

Stochastic mechanics can be applied consistently to quantise gauge field in the temporal-like gauges such as the flow gauges, static gauges and the fully fixed temporal gauges.     

Lévy's stochastic area in stochastic mechanics

Using the methods of Hida's white noise calculus, we study Lévy's stochastic area spanned by a two-dimensional stochastic process of relevance in Nelson's stochastic mechanics. An intriguing partial relationship is found with quantum mechanical angular momentum for the associated Schrödinger wave-function.     

Momentum in stochastic quantum mechanics

Momentum is analyzed as a random variable in stochastic quantum mechanics. Arbitrary potential energy functions are considered. The oscillator is presented as an example.     

Spin correlation in stochastic mechanics

Stochastic mechanics may be used to described the spin of atomic particles. The spin variables have the same expectations as in quantum mechanics, but not the same distributions. They play the role of hidden variables that influence, but do not determine, the results of Stern-Gerlach experiments involving magnets. During the course of such an experiment spin becomes correlated with position. The case of two particles with zero total spin occurs in Bohm's version of the Einstein-Rosen-Podolsky experiment.This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. MCS-8002945.     

Numerical analysis of uncertain temperature field by stochastic finite difference method

Based on the combination of stochastic mathematics and conventional finite difference method,a new numerical computing technique named stochastic finite difference for solving heat conduction problems with random physical parameters,initial and boundary conditions is discussed.Begin with the analysis of steady-state heat conduction problems,difference discrete equations with random parameters are established,and then the computing formulas for the mean value and variance of temperature field are derived by the second-order stochastic parameter perturbation method.Subsequently,the proposed random model and method are extended to the field of transient heat conduction and the new analysis theory of stability applicable to stochastic difference schemes is developed.The layer-by-layer recursive equations for the first two probabilistic moments of the transient temperature field at different time points are quickly obtained and easily solved by programming.Finally,by comparing the results with traditional Monte Carlo simulation,two numerical examples are given to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the presented method for solving both steady-state and transient heat conduction problems.     

Noncommutative quantum mechanics from noncommutative quantum field theory

We derive noncommutative multiparticle quantum mechanics from noncommutative quantum field theory in the nonrelativistic limit. Particles of opposite charges are found to have opposite noncommutativity. As a result, there is no noncommutative correction to the hydrogen atom spectrum at the tree level. We also comment on the obstacles to take noncommutative phenomenology seriously and propose a way to construct noncommutative SU(5) grand unified theory.     

The transitions among classical mechanics,quantum mechanics,and stochastic quantum mechanics

Various formalisms for recasting quantum mechanics in the framework of classical mechanics on phase space are reviewed and compared. Recent results in stochastic quantum mechanics are shown to avoid the difficulties encountered by the earlier approach of Wigner, as well as to avoid the well-known incompatibilities of relativity and ordinary quantum theory. Specific mappings among the various formalisms are given.     

Doubly stochastic matrices in quantum mechanics

The general set of doubly stochastic matrices of order n corresponding to ordinary nonrelativistic quantum mechanical transition probability matrices is given. Landé's discussion of the nonquantal origin of such matrices is noted. Several concrete examples are presented for elementary and composite angular momentum systems with the focus on the unitary symmetry associated with such systems in the spirit of the recent work of Bohr and Ulfbeck. Birkhoff's theorem on doubly stochastic matrices of order n is reformulated in a geometrical language suitable for application to the subset of quantum mechanical doubly stochastic matrices. Specifically, it is shown that the set of points on the unit sphere in cartesian n!-space is surjective with the set of doubly stochastic matrices of order n. The question is raised, but not answered, as to what is the subset of points of this unit sphere that correspond to the quantum mechanical transition probability matrices, and what is the symmetry group of this subset of matrices.     

Generalized stochastic mechanics on Riemannian manifolds

Dankel's stochastic mechanics on Riemannian manifolds is generalized such that the diffusion constant becomes a free parameter in the theory.     

Finite temperature correlation functions from form factors

We investigate proposals of how the form factor approach to compute correlation functions at zero temperature can be extended to finite temperature. For the two-point correlation function we conclude that the suggestion to use the usual form factor expansion with the modification of introducing dressing functions of various kinds is only suitable for free theories. Dynamically interacting theories require a more severe change of the form factor program.     

On the derivation of the Schrödinger equation from stochastic mechanics

It is shown that the existing formulations of stochastic mechanics are not equivalent to the Schrödinger equation, as had previously been believed. It is argued that this is a reflection of fundamental inadequacies in the physical foundations of stochastic mechanics.Some relatively minor difficulties with the demonstration of equivalence are already known for the special case in which the nodal surface separates the manifold of the diffusion into disjoint components.^(1,11) The problems described in this paper are much more general and quite unrelated.     

Fuzzy amplitude densities and stochastic quantum mechanics

Fuzzy amplitude densities are employed to obtain probability distributions for measurements that are not perfectly accurate. The resulting quantum probability theory is motivated by the path integral formalism for quantum mechanics. Measurements that are covariant relative to a symmetry group are considered. It is shown that the theory includes traditional as well as stochastic quantum mechanics.     

Quantum statistical mechanics on stochastic phase space

Within the context of the theory of stochastic phase spaces, introduced in some earlier papers, a systematic mathematical procedure is developed for expressing quantum mechanical observables as generalized functions on a stochastic phase space. The states in such a theory are normalized, positive semidefinite, continuous functions of the phase space variables, satisfying marginality conditions appropriate to the stochastic nature of the underlying phase space. The action of a general quantum mechanical observable on the state space is then shown to lead in general to formal differential operators of finite or infinite order. Explicit computations of some typical operators are made to illustrate the theory. As a useful practical application, the theory is employed to derive a Bloch equation from which the Husimi transform of the canonical equilibrium state is then computed, after expressing it as an infinite series in powers of .Supported in part by a research grant from the National Research Council of Canada.     

On reformulating quantum mechanics and stochastic theory

A stochastic theory approach is used to formulate the theory of quantum mechanical motion. Apart from giving a unifying point of view to quantum mechanics and stochastic theory, the new formulation is not limited to forces derivable from a potential. A nonlinear dynamical law is deduced in contradistinction to previous works in whichad hoc linear laws are postulated.