The discussion centers on the complexities of black hole evaporation and vacuum energy, particularly focusing on the role of virtual particles and pair production. Participants clarify that while both particles in a pair created by vacuum fluctuations locally carry positive energy, one may appear to have negative energy at infinity, contributing to the phenomenon of Hawking radiation. The conversation also touches on the implications of virtual particles in quantum field theory (QFT) and their relevance to high-energy physics, emphasizing that they are not mere artifacts but crucial for understanding fundamental processes like annihilation and energy conservation.
PREREQUISITESPhysicists, cosmologists, and students of theoretical physics seeking to deepen their understanding of black hole dynamics, quantum field theory, and the nature of vacuum energy.
Well this may be confusing. The definition of the vacuum to start with is the state with the lowest possible energy, and only energy differences matter : at this point with do not need perturbative methods. I think it is worth emphasizing before embarking into perturbative calculations of the energy of the fluctuations.malawi_glenn said:...
humanino said:Well this may be confusing. The definition of the vacuum to start with is the state with the lowest possible energy, and only energy differences matter : at this point with do not need perturbative methods. I think it is worth emphasizing before embarking into perturbative calculations of the energy of the fluctuations.