How does one fermion change the energy of another fermion

[susskind99]

My understanding of how one fermion changes the energy of another is something like: fermion x approaches fermion y and x emits bosons which are absorbed by y. But why does one billiard ball transfer a lot of its energy to another billiard ball on contact? Say billiard ball x approaches billiard ball y, x hits y, x stops and y moves. I realize the Pauli Exclusion Principle forbids x from occupying the same place as y. But why does y absorb more bosons from x than vice versa? Why would the fact that x is moving y to absorb more bosons from x than x absorbs from y?

 

[tiny-tim]

hi susskind99!

My understanding of how one fermion changes the energy of another is something like: fermion x approaches fermion y and x emits bosons which are absorbed by y.

sorry, but that's just a myth told by mathematicians to frighten physicists!

those boson lines you see in feynman diagrams "carrying the force" are just a mathematical trick that help in the calculations

after all, when two electrons repel each other, do you think that can be explained by by emitting (presumably negative-mass) bosons? ​

(and btw, it's really the momentum that's affected, rather than the energy)

 

[susskind99]

hi susskind99!


sorry, but that's just a myth told by mathematicians to frighten physicists!

those boson lines you see in feynman diagrams "carrying the force" are just a mathematical trick that help in the calculations

after all, when two electrons repel each other, do you think that can be explained by by emitting (presumably negative-mass) bosons? ​

(and btw, it's really the momentum that's affected, rather than the energy)

Then how does a fermion's energy change?

 

[mpv_plate]

Then how does a fermion's energy change?

Like kinetic energy? You can accelerate a charged fermion via electric field.

Or you mean increase of electron energy in atomic orbital? Electron absorbs a real photon.