Weak Convergence and Banach Space-Valued Functions: Improving the Stability Theory of Feynman’s Operational Calculi

In this paper we investigate the relation between weak convergence of a sequence \(\left\{ \mu_{n}\right\} \) of probability measures on a Polish space S converging weakly to the probability measure μ and continuous, norm-bounded functions into a Banach space X. We show that, given a norm-bounded continuous function f:S→X, it follows that \(\lim_{n\to\infty}\int_{S}f\, d\mu_{n}=\int_{S}f\, d\mu\)—the limit one has for bounded and continuous real (or complex)—valued functions on S. This result is then applied to the stability theory of Feynman’s operational calculus where it is shown that the theory can be significantly improved over previous results.     

Feynman’s Operational Calculi: Spectral Theory for Noncommuting Self-adjoint Operators

The spectral theorem for commuting self-adjoint operators along with the associated functional (or operational) calculus is among the most useful and beautiful results of analysis. It is well known that forming a functional calculus for noncommuting self-adjoint operators is far more problematic. The central result of this paper establishes a rich functional calculus for any finite number of noncommuting (i.e. not necessarily commuting) bounded, self-adjoint operators A ₁,..., A _n and associated continuous Borel probability measures μ ₁, ⋯, μ _n on [0,1]. Fix A ₁,..., A _n . Then each choice of an n-tuple of measures determines one of Feynman’s operational calculi acting on a certain Banach algebra of analytic functions even when A ₁, ..., A _n are just bounded linear operators on a Banach space. The Hilbert space setting along with self-adjointness allows us to extend the operational calculi well beyond the analytic functions. Using results and ideas drawn largely from the proof of our main theorem, we also establish a family of Trotter product type formulas suitable for Feynman’s operational calculi.      

The magic of Feynman’s QED: from field-less electrodynamics to the Feynman diagrams

For some time, even after the Feynman diagrams and rules were publicly known, the foundations of Feynman’s quantum electrodynamics remained mostly private. Its stupendous efficiency then appeared like magic to most of his competitors. The purpose of this essay is to reveal the hidden contrivances of this magic, in a journey from field-less electrodynamics to the Feynman diagrams.

     

Feynman’s Relativistic Electrodynamics Paradox and the Aharonov-Bohm Effect

An analysis is done of a relativistic paradox posed in the Feynman Lectures of Physics involving two interacting charges. The physical system presented is compared with similar systems that also lead to relativistic paradoxes. The momentum conservation problem for these systems is presented. The relation between the presented analysis and the ongoing debates on momentum conservation in the Aharonov-Bohm problem is discussed.     

A Generalization of the Bargmann’s Theory of Ray Representations

The paper contains a complete theory of factors for ray representations acting in a Hilbert bundle, which is a generalization of the known Bargmanns theory. With its help, we have reformulated the standard quantum theory so that the gauge freedom emerges naturally from the very nature of quantum laws. The theory is of primary importance in the investigations of covariance (in contradistinction to symmetry) of a quantum theory which possesses a nontrivial gauge freedom. In that case the group in question is not any symmetry group but a covariance group only – the case not yet investigated in depth. It is shown that the factor of a covariance group representation depends on space and time when the system in question possesses gauge freedom. In nonrelativistic theories, the factor depends on time only. In relativistic theory, the Hilbert bundle is built over spacetime while in the nonrelativistic case-over time. We explain two applications of this generalization: in the theory of a quantum particle in gravitational field in the nonrelativistic limit, and in quantum electrodynamics.     

Stability of the Landau–Fermi Liquid Theory

The stability of the Landau–Fermi liquid theory is investigated. It has been shown that if the interaction function of the Fermi system is a finite function of the angle between the momenta of two particles at the Fermi surface, then the liquid can be stable. We have shown that the absolute value of the expansion coefficients of the interaction functions in Legendre polynomials are decreasing function of the coefficients indices. We solve the stability condition for one photon exchange (OPE) in an electron gas. The results show that we must use the massive boson propagator (higher order corrections to the photon propagator). Similar to previous works (Abrikosov et al. in Method of Quantum Field Theory in Statistical Physics, Pergamon, Elmsford, 1965), our result is proportional to g ². The density and temperature dependence of results is occulted in the effective mass of the system.     

Searching for a response: the intriguing mystery of Feynman’s theoretical reference amplifier

We analyze Feynman’s work on the response of an amplifier performed at Los Alamos and described in a technical report of 1946, as well as lectured on at the Cornell University in 1946–47 during his course on Mathematical Methods. The motivation for such a work was Feynman’s involvement in the Manhattan Project, for which the necessity emerged of feeding the output pulses of counters into amplifiers or several other circuits, with the risk of introducing distortion at each step. In order to deal with such a problem, Feynman designed a theoretical “reference amplifier”, thus enabling a characterization of the distortion by means of a benchmark relationship between phase and amplification for each frequency, and providing a standard tool for comparing the operation of real devices. A general theory was elaborated, from which he was able to deduce the basic features of an amplifier just from its response to a pulse or to a sine wave of definite frequency. Moreover, in order to apply such a theory to practical problems, a couple of remarkable examples were worked out, both for high-frequency cutoff amplifiers and for low-frequency ones. A special consideration deserves a mysteriously exceptional amplifier with best stability behavior introduced by Feynman, for which different physical interpretations are here envisaged. Feynman’s earlier work then later flowed in the Hughes lectures on Mathematical Methods in Physics and Engineering of 1970–71, where he also remarked on causality properties of an amplifier, that is on certain relations between frequency and phase shift that a real amplifier has to satisfy in order not to allow output signals to appear before input ones. Quite interestingly, dispersion relations to be satisfied by the response function were introduced.

     

Einstein, Wigner and Feynman: From E=mc 2 to Feynman’s decoherence via Wigner’s little groups

The 20th-century physics starts with Einstein and ends with Feynman. Einstein introduced the Lorentz-covariant world with E=mc ². Feynman observed that fast-moving hadrons consist of partons which interact incoherently with external signals. If quarks and partons are the same entities observed in different Lorentz frames, the question then is why partons are incoherent while quarks are coherent. This is the most puzzling question Feynman left for us to solve. In this report, we discuss Wigner’s role in settling this question. Einstein’s E=mc ², which takes the form $E = \sqrt {m^2 + p^2 } $ , unifies the energy-momentum relations for massive and massless particles, but it does not take into account internal space-time structure of relativistic particles. It is pointed out Wigner’s 1939 paper on the inhomogeneous Lorentz group defines particle spin and gauge degrees of freedom in the Lorentz-covariant world. Within the Wigner framework, it is shown possible to construct the internal space-time structure for hadrons in the quark model. It is then shown that the quark model and the parton model are two different manifestations of the same covariant entity. It is shown therefore that the lack of coherence in Feynman’s parton picture is an effect of the Lorentz covariance.     

Feynman’s Proof of Maxwell Equations: in?the?Context?of Quantum Gravity

Many of us are familiar with Feynman’s “proof” of 1948, as revealed by Dyson, which demonstrates that Maxwell equations of electromagnetism are a consequence of Newton’s laws of motion of classical mechanics and the commutation relations of coordinate and momentum of quantum mechanics. It was Feynman’s purpose to explore the universality of dynamics of particles while making the fewest assumptions. We re-examine this formulation in the context of quantum gravity and show how Feynman’s derivation can be extended to include quantum gravity.     

Rate of Convergence for Cardy’s Formula

We show that crossing probabilities in 2D critical site percolation on the triangular lattice in a piecewise analytic Jordan domain converge with power law rate in the mesh size to their limit given by the Cardy–Smirnov formula. We use this result to obtain new upper and lower bounds of ${e^{O(\sqrt{{\rm log}\,{\rm log} R})}\, R^{-1/3}}$ for the probability that the cluster at the origin in the half-plane has diameter R, improving the previously known estimate of R ^?1/3+o(1).     

Elastic Properties of Graphene-Like Compounds: the Keating’s and Harisson’s Models

Physics of the Solid State - The third-order elastic constants, the pressure dependences of the second-order elastic constants, the Kleinman and Grüneisen parameters, and the thermal expansion...     

Charge Conservation,Klein’s Paradox and the Concept of Paulions in the Dirac Electron Theory

An algebraic block-diagonalization of the Dirac Hamiltonian in a time-independent external field reveals a charge-index conservation law which forbids the physical phenomena of the Klein paradox type and guarantees a single-particle nature of the Dirac equation in strong external fields. Simultaneously, the method defines simpler quantum-mechanical objects—paulions and antipaulions, whose 2-component wave functions determine the Dirac electron states through exact operator relations. Based on algebraic symmetry, the presented theory leads to a new understanding of the Dirac equation physics, including new insight into the Dirac measurements and a consistent scheme of relativistic quantum mechanics of electron in the paulion representation. Along with analysis of the mathematical anatomy of the Klein paradox falsity, a complete set of paradox-free eigenfunctions for the Klein problem is obtained and investigated via stationary solutions of the Pauli-like equations with respective paulion Hamiltonians. It is shown that the physically correct Dirac states in the Klein zone are characterized by the total particle reflection from the potential step and satisfy the fundamental charge-index conservation law.     

Formalization of Bohr’s Contextuality Within the Theory of Open Quantum Systems

Journal of Russian Laser Research - In quantum physics, the notion of contextuality has a variety of interpretations, which are typically associated with the names of their inventors, say, Bohr,...     

The Qweak: Precision Measurement of the Proton’s Weak Charge by Parity Violating Experiment

The Qweak experiment at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility measures the parity violating asymmetry in longitudinally polarized electron scattering from the proton at very low momentum transfer, Q ² = 0.026 (GeV/c)², at an incident electron beam energy of 1.16 GeV. With this measurement and the earlier results of the parity violating elastic scattering experiments, the Qweak experiment determines the weak charge of the proton, ${Q^p_{\rm W}}$ , with a 4% combined statistical and systematic error. This measurement will be used to determine the weak mixing angle, ${\sin^2\theta_{\rm W}}$ , that is predicted by the Standard Model from the Z ⁰ pole down to lower energies. Qweak will determine ${\sin^2\theta_{\rm W}}$ to a 0.3% relative precision, providing a competitive measurement of the running of this quantity. Moreover, if there is a significant deviation of the weak mixing angle from the Standard Model prediction, then the Qweak experiment will give a glimpse of possible extensions of the Standard Model.     

Modular-Invariance of Trace Functions¶in Orbifold Theory and Generalized Moonshine

The goal of the present paper is to provide a mathematically rigorous foundation to certain aspects of the theory of rational orbifold models in conformal field theory, in other words the theory of rational vertex operator algebras and their automorphisms. Under a certain finiteness condition on a rational vertex operator algebra V which holds in all known examples, we determine the precise number of g-twisted sectors for any automorphism g of V of finite order. We prove that the trace functions and correlation functions associated with such twisted sectors are holomorphic functions in the upper half-plane and, under suitable conditions, afford a representation of the modular group of the type prescribed in string theory. We establish the rationality of conformal weights and central charge. In addition to conformal field theory itself, where our conclusions are required on physical grounds, there are applications to the generalized Moonshine conjectures of Conway–Norton–Queen and to equivariant elliptic cohomology. Received: 7 January 1999 / Accepted: 14 March 2000     

On the Classical Limit in Bohm’s Theory

The standard means of seeking the classical limit in Bohmian mechanics is through the imposition of vanishing quantum force and quantum potential for pure states. We argue that this approach fails, and that the Bohmian classical limit can be realized only by combining narrow wave packets, mixed states, and environmental decoherence.     

Landauer’s limit and the physicality of information

Landauer’s lower bound on the dissipative cost of information erasure is revisited within a new physical conception of information. The notion of strong physical information is introduced, and the new conception of physical information – observer-local referential (OLR) information – is defined, shown to be strongly physical, and related to other measures that arise in physical information contexts. A generalization of Landauer’s limit is then obtained for OLR information from quantum dynamics and entropic inequalities alone. Specializations of this bound are compared and contrasted to similar bounds under conditions for which they coincide, and important distinctions between seemingly identical bounds expressed in terms of various information measures are discussed. The controversial distinction between Landauer erasure of known and unknown data – and the alleged difference between their respective erasure costs – is then explored via OLR information. This physically grounds and clarifies distinctions between known and unknown data and between unconditional and conditional erasure operations, enables a straightforward physical accounting of associated lower bounds on erasure costs, and illustrates the advantages of OLR information for resolution of controversies related to the dissipative cost of information erasure. Applications of OLR information to determination of irreversibility induced dissipation bounds in more complex computing scenarios are briefly discussed.