Against Field Interpretations of Quantum Field Theory
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8397348 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David John Baker (0000-0003-3921-7517) |
| Year | 2009 |
| Volume | 60 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 585-609 |
| Publication date | 2009-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0007-0882 • E-ISSN: 1464-3537 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/bjps/axp027 |
| OpenAlex | W2134401874 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 29 |
| References cited | 17 |
I examine some problems standing in the way of a successful `field interpretation' of quantum field theory. The most popular extant proposal depends on the Hilbert space of `wavefunctionals.' But since wavefunctional space is unitarily equivalent to many-particle Fock space, two of the most powerful arguments against particle interpretations also undermine this form of field interpretation. 1. Introduction 2. Field Interpretations and Field Operators 3. The Wavefunctional Interpretation 4. Fields and Inequivalent Representations 4.1. The Rindler representation 4.2. Spontaneous symmetry breaking 4.3. Coherent representations 5. The Fate of Fields in Interacting QFT 6. Conclusions
Epistemology · Field (mathematics) · Physics · Pure mathematics · Quantum field theory · Quantum mechanics · Theoretical physics · Cosmology and Gravitation Theories · Mathematics · Philosophy · Quantum Mechanics and Applications · Relativity and Gravitational Theory
Philosophical Aspects of Quantum Field Theory
Philosophical Aspects of Quantum Field Theory
Broken Symmetry and Spacetime
Quantum Field Theory
Quantum Mechanics, Fields, Black Holes, and Ontological Plurality
Interpreting Supersymmetry
Ontology in Quantum Field Theory Through Hegel's Science of Logic
Trope ontology and algebraic quantum field theory
How electrons spin
Ontic structural realism and quantum field theory
Physical composition
Why be normal
Putting positrons into classical Dirac field theory
Part and whole in physics
Restoring particle phenomenology
Taking particle physics seriously
Unitary inequivalence as a problem for structural realism
Are field quanta real objects? Some remarks on the ontology of quantum field theory
Fundamentality in metaphysics and the philosophy of physics. Part II
The fundamentality of fields
Particles, fields, and the ontology of the standard model
Pluralist structural realism
The ontology of quantum field theory
Scientific Realism Made Effective
A Persistent Particle Ontology for Quantum Field Theory in Terms of the Dirac Sea
Infinite Scale Skepticism
The Coalescence Approach to Inequivalent Representation
Ontologies for Quantum Field Theory
Scientific realism and underdetermination in quantum theory
Natural Laws In Scientific Practice
Weyling the time away
The fate of ‘particles’ in quantum field theories with interactions
In Defence of Naiveté
Zero-Value Physical Quantities
Johnny's So Long at the Ferromagnet
Fulling Non-uniqueness and the Unruh Effect
Is Quantum Mechanics Pointless
Interpreting Quantum Field Theory
No Place for Particles in Relativistic Quantum Theories
What Price Spacetime Substantivalism? The Hole Story
The Hole Truth
Epistemology Quantized
Philosophical foundations of quantum field theory
| Unique citing works | 29 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,71 |
| Citation span | 2009 - 2025 (17) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 25 |