Question on Olive-Montonen Duality

  • Thread starter metroplex021
  • Start date
  • Tags
    Duality
In summary, the Olive-Montonen paper shows how quanta of photon, higgs and heavy gauge boson can be generated from the Georgi-Glashow model, but they state that these correspond to classical particles in the limit that h→0. Questions remain about why we care about this and how h can be taken to zero without affecting h-bar.
  • #1
metroplex021
151
0
Hi there -- I've just started looking at the topic of dualities in quantum field theory, and I've hit the wall right at the beginning! Looking at the classic Olive-Montonen paper (from 1977), they show how we get elementary quanta of photon, higgs and heavy gauge boson from the Georgi-Glashow model, and that's all familiar and fine. They then say, however, that these correspond to `classical particles' in the limit that h→0, with the charge and quantities in h-bar held fixed in the process. I have two questions about this:

(1) Why do we care about whether or not these quanta correspond to classical particles? Don't we think of particles in terms of field quanta these days?

(2) How can we keep quantities in h-bar fixed given that we're taking the limit in which h→0?

I'm sorry if these seem like stupid or overly specific questions, but since all the literature on duality seems to begin with M-O duality as the simplest example I thought I'd better get this sorted out at the outset! Big thanks to anyone who can help here.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
I'll try to give the best response I can.

1) Particles can be a mathematical simplification in some instances, eg during double slit experiments.

2) H bar is a separate constant referring to angular momentum, as long as changes in H do no affect rotation H bar may be defined as a fixed value.

Hope that helps.
 
  • #3
Thanks mustang19 -- that definitely does help. I'm going to re-phrase the first part of my question and ask it again at some point I think, but can I just press you on the latter part about h and h-bar: thank you for your answer because it reassures me that this literature is not completely crazy! I'll keep your answer in mind while I continue to read, but I must say I'm still struggling a bit with how h can be taken to zero and not h-bar, given that the latter is defined in terms of h and 2.pi . Any words or references you could give as to how the latter can be non-zero while the former is taken to zero would be greatly appreciated: but you've already been very helpful so no stress. Thanks again mate.
 

1. What is the Olive-Montonen duality?

The Olive-Montonen duality is a mathematical concept that relates different types of physical theories, including gauge theories and string theories. It suggests that certain physical theories are equivalent to one another, despite appearing different on the surface.

2. Who proposed the Olive-Montonen duality?

The Olive-Montonen duality was proposed by physicists John Olive and Claude Montonen in the 1970s. They were studying supersymmetric gauge theories and noticed a connection between them and string theories.

3. How does the Olive-Montonen duality work?

The Olive-Montonen duality works by transforming a theory with a gauge group G to a dual theory with a gauge group G*. This transformation is achieved by swapping the electric and magnetic charges in the theory. This duality can also be extended to include the coupling constant of the theory.

4. What are the implications of the Olive-Montonen duality?

The implications of the Olive-Montonen duality are significant for theoretical physics. It suggests that seemingly different theories may be equivalent to one another, providing a more unified understanding of the universe. This duality has also been used to solve problems in quantum field theory and supergravity.

5. Can the Olive-Montonen duality be proven?

At this time, the Olive-Montonen duality is a conjecture and has not been proven. However, there is a significant amount of evidence supporting it, including its success in solving various problems in theoretical physics. Its validity is still an active area of research and debate among scientists.

Similar threads

  • High Energy, Nuclear, Particle Physics
Replies
2
Views
2K
  • High Energy, Nuclear, Particle Physics
Replies
1
Views
2K
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
14
Views
3K
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
2
Views
2K
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
1
Views
1K
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
0
Views
899
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
1
Views
2K
Replies
5
Views
722
  • Beyond the Standard Models
Replies
9
Views
3K
  • Quantum Physics
Replies
2
Views
1K
Back
Top