What is the meaning of antisymmetry in wavefunctions?

[piareround]

Hey guys,

I just finished reading a proof from Particle physics
By Brian Robert Martin, Graham Shaw on a proving that if color confinement implies baryons color wavefunction is antisymmetric. One thing I am having trouble understanding though is what exactly does it mean for a wavefunction to be antisymmetric?. I remember my professor going over antisymmetry, but is was from an example of spin so I didn't understand it 100% because it involved stuff in quantum physics that I had not gotten to yet.

So I was hoping that some could explain or find links explaining:

1) What exactly does it mean to be symmetric/antisymmetric from a wavefunction point of view?
2) What does it mean to be symmetric/antisymmetric from a vector or graphically point of view? (for example from the perspective graph of complex plane)
3) Is their a easy metaphor or song to help remember symmetry?


Thanks in advance,

piearound

 

[zomgwtf]

I'm pretty sure it just means if you switch a particle with another particle the sign stays the same. That's anti-symmetric.

 

[askAphysicist]

Just to clarify: Are you sure you don't mean asymmetric rather than antisymmetric?

 

[kaksmet]

Anti-symmetric is exactly what it is about. In this context it means that the baryon wavefunction change sign if you exchange two of the quarks inside.
In general symmetric/anti-symmetric means slightly different things depending on what it is regarding to. One of the easies examples is reflection, i.e. looking in the mirror. Something that looks the same in the mirror is symmetric, for example a straight horizontal line, while something that looks as if it points in the opposite direction is anti-symmetric, say an arrow.

asymmetric means that something is not symmetric, while anti-symmetric means that if you include a change of sign this something is symmetric.. so what is anti-symmetric is a subset of what is asymmetric.

Hope this was of some help
Cheers