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Vorde
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How does the exchange of virtual photons result in an attractive force (for example between a proton and electron)?
Vorde said:How does the exchange of virtual photons result in an attractive force (for example between a proton and electron)?
Bill_K said:Vorde, You're probably visualizing the photons as little bullets that get batted back and forth between the two particles, and every time a photon hits its target, that particle will recoil a little bit, getting pushed back. Not the way it works, of course!
We draw a Feynman diagram, in which particle A emits a photon and particle B later absorbs it. What you need to remember is that this picture is not a literal snapshot of what's happening - it's more abstract. You can draw a Feynman diagram either in position space (x) or in momentum space (p). In classical mechanics you can specify both x and p at the same time, but in quantum mechanics you have to choose one or the other.
Specifically if you draw particle A to the left of particle B, that does not say anything about the momentum of the photon that's exchanged. It can push to the left or to the right, either one. So our classical instinct that A must be pushing B away leads us astray.
Ok fine. That's more than I can say! If you'd asked for example, "How does the exchange of virtual photons result in an attractive (or repulsive) force" I'd have known that you weren't thinking in terms of billiard balls. Coulomb repulsion is just as hard to explain as attraction.i'm aware of all the quantum intricacies.
The exchange of virtual photons is a fundamental concept in quantum field theory, where particles are viewed as excitations of underlying quantum fields. It refers to the idea that particles can interact with each other by exchanging virtual particles, specifically photons in the case of electromagnetic interactions.
The exchange of virtual photons explains the electromagnetic force by proposing that charged particles interact with each other by exchanging virtual photons. When two charged particles approach each other, they create an electromagnetic field that is made up of virtual photons. These virtual photons then interact with the particles, causing them to either attract or repel each other, depending on their charges.
No, virtual photons are not real particles in the traditional sense. Unlike real photons, which have measurable properties such as energy and momentum, virtual photons are mathematical entities that only exist within the equations of quantum field theory. They are a useful concept for understanding the interactions between particles, but cannot be directly observed or detected.
Virtual particles are necessary in the exchange of virtual photons because they mediate the interaction between particles. In quantum field theory, all interactions are thought to occur through the exchange of particles, including the electromagnetic force. The virtual photons act as carriers of the force between charged particles, allowing them to interact even when they are not in direct contact.
The exchange of virtual photons can occur between any particles that have an electric charge. This includes particles such as electrons, protons, and even atoms. However, the strength of the interaction depends on the charges of the particles involved, with particles of opposite charges having a stronger interaction than those with the same charge.