What is the Lorentz Transformation for Spinor Indices of the Weyl Operator?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the Lorentz transformation for spinor indices of the Weyl operator, particularly how the transformation relates to the preservation of certain mathematical structures involving four-vectors and matrices. The scope includes theoretical aspects of quantum field theory and the Poincaré group.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Meta-discussion

Main Points Raised

  • One participant presents the left-handed Weyl operator as a ##2\times 2## matrix and discusses its relationship with four-vectors through sigma matrices.
  • The same participant questions how the transformation defined by a complex ##2\times 2## matrix ##\Lambda_{L}## can be shown to be a Lorentz transformation.
  • Another participant references a book that provides a clear treatment of topics related to the Poincaré group.
  • A subsequent post corrects the spelling of the second author's name in the book reference.
  • Another participant expresses skepticism about the existence of an "ultimate guide" to the Poincaré group while acknowledging the book's value for understanding group-theoretical foundations in relativistic quantum field theory.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the completeness of resources regarding the Poincaré group, with no consensus on whether the referenced book is the definitive guide.

Contextual Notes

There are unresolved questions regarding the implications of the transformation ##\Lambda_{L}## and its relationship to Lorentz transformations, as well as the interpretation of the preservation of the product involving the epsilon tensors.

spaghetti3451
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The left-handed Weyl operator is defined by the ##2\times 2## matrix

$$p_{\mu}\bar{\sigma}_{\dot{\beta}\alpha}^{\mu} = \begin{pmatrix} p^0 +p^3 & p^1 - i p^2\\ p^1 + ip^2 & p^0 - p^3 \end{pmatrix},$$

where ##\bar{\sigma}^{\mu}=(1,-\vec{\sigma})## are sigma matrices.One can use the sigma matrices to go back and forth between four-vectors and ##2\times 2## matrices:

$$p_{\mu} \iff p_{\dot{\beta}\alpha}\equiv p_{\mu}\bar{\sigma}^{\mu}_{\dot{\beta}\alpha}.$$Given two four-vectors ##p## and ##q## written as ##2\times 2## matrices,

$$\epsilon^{\dot{\alpha}\dot{\beta}}\epsilon^{\alpha\beta}p_{\dot{\alpha}\alpha}q_{\dot{\beta}\beta} = 2p^{\mu}q_{\mu}.$$Given a complex ##2\times 2## matrix ##\Lambda_{L}## with unit determinant, it can be shown that the transformation ##p_{\dot{\beta}\alpha} \rightarrow (\Lambda_{L}^{-1\dagger}p\Lambda_{L}^{-1})_{\dot{\beta}\alpha}## preserves the product ##\epsilon^{\dot{\alpha}\dot{\beta}}\epsilon^{\alpha\beta}p_{\dot{\alpha}\alpha}q_{\dot{\beta}\beta}##.

How does it then follow that ##\Lambda_{L}## is a Lorentz transformation? Do we have to use the fact that ##\epsilon^{\dot{\alpha}\dot{\beta}}\epsilon^{\alpha\beta}p_{\dot{\alpha}\alpha}q_{\dot{\beta}\beta} \sim p^{\mu}q_{\mu}##? What is the Lorentz transformation for ##p^{\mu}## due to the transformation ##\Lambda_{L}## for ##p_{\dot{\alpha}\alpha}##?
 
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You find a very clear treatment about anything connected with the Poincare group in

R. U. Sexl and H. K. Urbandtke, Relativity, Groups, Particles, Springer, Wien, 2001.
 
I think the second author's name is Urbantke, not Urbandtke.
 
Is this the ultimate guide for anything related to the Poincare group?
 
True, it's Urbantke. There's no "ultimate guide" to anything, but it's a very good book to get the group-theoretical foundations needed to study relativistic QFT more easily than without this basis.
 

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