Parity formulae, orbital angular momentum, mesons

In summary, the intrinsic parity of a particle is given by ##\pm 1## and the total parity of a system of particles is determined by the product of intrinsic parities and the orbital angular momentum number, resulting in ##(-1)^l##. This applies to mesons, where the quark and antiquark have opposite intrinsic parities, resulting in ##(-1)^{l+1}## for the total parity.
  • #1
binbagsss
1,254
11
So a particle has intrinsic parity ##\pm 1 ## .
The parity of a system of particles is given by product of intrinsic parities and the result is: ##(-1)^l ## (1).

Questions:

1) How does this result follow?
and what exactly is ##l## here? so it's the orbital angular momentum, so say a particle is made up of 3 quarks, then it's described to be in a certain state, ##1p## , ##1s## states etc, so ##l## is the orbital angular momentum of this state?

2) For a meson ##p=(-1)^{l+1}##
The reasoning in my book being that the quark and antiquark have opposite intrinsic parities,

So I assume this followss from (1), although I am not seeing how??

But, in the result (1) , this is a general result for any system of particles right? So quarks and antiquarks of the same type could be included in any system yet ## (-1)^l ## still holds?Thanks in advance.
 
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  • #2
bump.
 
  • #3
[itex]l[/itex] is the angular momentum number. The particles in general will be described by spherical harmonic functions [itex]Y_{lm}(\theta, \phi)[/itex] which have the given parity:
[itex]\hat{P} Y_{lm} (\theta, \phi) \equiv Y_{lm} (\pi-\theta, \phi+ \pi)= (-1)^l Y_{lm} (\theta, \phi)[/itex]

Take for example a meson.
The meson will have a quark and antiquark [itex]q, \bar{q}[/itex].
So the intrinsic parity of the one will be +1 and the parity of the other will be -1.
On the other hand, the meson can have some spatial angular momentum number [itex]l[/itex].
So the total parity will be: [itex] (+1) \times (-1) \times (-1)^l = (-1)^{l+1}[/itex]
 
  • #4
So I guess you make a wrong assumption before your eq.1.
"The parity of a system of particles is given by product of intrinsic parities "
This is wrong (probably a misconception).

Again take a meson... it is a [itex]q \bar{q}[/itex] state with some angular momentum [itex]l[/itex] due to the quarks. Since the meson has an orbital angular momentum [itex]l[/itex], its angular distributions are described by the spherical harmonics [itex]Y_{lm}[/itex]. It's from this relation that you get the eq.1 [itex](-1)^l[/itex], and not by getting the intrinsic parities.
http://pdg.lbl.gov/2008/reviews/quarkmodrpp.pdf
Sec. 14.2
 
  • #5
ChrisVer said:
[itex]l[/itex]
The meson will have a quark and antiquark [itex]q, \bar{q}[/itex].
So the intrinsic parity of the one will be +1 and the parity of the other will be -1.


Is this always the case with a particle and antiparticle, that they have opposite parities?
 
  • #6
binbagsss said:
Is this always the case with a particle and antiparticle, that they have opposite parities?
For fermions, yes. For bosons, no.
 

1. What is the parity formula?

The parity formula is a mathematical equation used to describe the symmetry properties of a physical system. It determines whether the system is symmetric or anti-symmetric under a spatial reflection. In particle physics, the parity formula is used to determine the even or odd nature of a particle's quantum state.

2. What is orbital angular momentum?

Orbital angular momentum is a measure of the rotation of a particle around a fixed point. In quantum mechanics, it is a quantum number that describes the shape and orientation of an electron's orbital around an atomic nucleus. In particle physics, it is used to describe the angular momentum of particles in a given orbital state.

3. What are mesons?

Mesons are subatomic particles made up of a quark and an antiquark. They are responsible for the strong nuclear force that binds protons and neutrons together in an atomic nucleus. Mesons have a mass between that of an electron and a proton and can have both integer and half-integer spin values.

4. What is the relationship between parity formulae and mesons?

The parity formula is used to determine the parity of mesons, which is a fundamental property of these particles. This information is crucial in understanding the interactions of mesons with other particles and in predicting their behavior in different physical systems.

5. How are orbital angular momentum and mesons related?

Orbital angular momentum is an important property of mesons, as it helps to determine the shape and orientation of their orbital states. In addition, the quantum numbers associated with orbital angular momentum play a crucial role in classifying and identifying different types of mesons.

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