Heisenberg energy uncertainty [duplicate]









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  • Why do many people say that virtual particles do not conserve energy?

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I am biologist and just new to the field of quantum mechanics and trying to understand the subject by reading. It is said that virtual particles are created due to the uncertainty of energy when consider a time, energy conjugate pair. Which leads to violate the energy conservation principle temporarily. But how a huge uncertainty in energy creates virtual particles? How it could violate the energy conservation principle?










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marked as duplicate by knzhou, AccidentalFourierTransform, John Rennie, Jon Custer, peterh 11 hours ago


This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.














  • other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
    – AccidentalFourierTransform
    2 days ago














up vote
10
down vote

favorite
2













This question already has an answer here:



  • Why do many people say that virtual particles do not conserve energy?

    5 answers



I am biologist and just new to the field of quantum mechanics and trying to understand the subject by reading. It is said that virtual particles are created due to the uncertainty of energy when consider a time, energy conjugate pair. Which leads to violate the energy conservation principle temporarily. But how a huge uncertainty in energy creates virtual particles? How it could violate the energy conservation principle?










share|cite|improve this question















marked as duplicate by knzhou, AccidentalFourierTransform, John Rennie, Jon Custer, peterh 11 hours ago


This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.














  • other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
    – AccidentalFourierTransform
    2 days ago












up vote
10
down vote

favorite
2









up vote
10
down vote

favorite
2






2






This question already has an answer here:



  • Why do many people say that virtual particles do not conserve energy?

    5 answers



I am biologist and just new to the field of quantum mechanics and trying to understand the subject by reading. It is said that virtual particles are created due to the uncertainty of energy when consider a time, energy conjugate pair. Which leads to violate the energy conservation principle temporarily. But how a huge uncertainty in energy creates virtual particles? How it could violate the energy conservation principle?










share|cite|improve this question
















This question already has an answer here:



  • Why do many people say that virtual particles do not conserve energy?

    5 answers



I am biologist and just new to the field of quantum mechanics and trying to understand the subject by reading. It is said that virtual particles are created due to the uncertainty of energy when consider a time, energy conjugate pair. Which leads to violate the energy conservation principle temporarily. But how a huge uncertainty in energy creates virtual particles? How it could violate the energy conservation principle?





This question already has an answer here:



  • Why do many people say that virtual particles do not conserve energy?

    5 answers







quantum-field-theory heisenberg-uncertainty-principle virtual-particles






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edited 2 days ago









Qmechanic

99.2k121781101




99.2k121781101










asked 2 days ago









Kosala

356112




356112




marked as duplicate by knzhou, AccidentalFourierTransform, John Rennie, Jon Custer, peterh 11 hours ago


This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.






marked as duplicate by knzhou, AccidentalFourierTransform, John Rennie, Jon Custer, peterh 11 hours ago


This question has been asked before and already has an answer. If those answers do not fully address your question, please ask a new question.













  • other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
    – AccidentalFourierTransform
    2 days ago
















  • other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
    – AccidentalFourierTransform
    2 days ago















other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
– AccidentalFourierTransform
2 days ago




other possible duplicates: Virtual particles with almost infinite energy?, Why are there e.m. vacuüm fluctuations? and links therein.
– AccidentalFourierTransform
2 days ago










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
13
down vote













This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship.



First of all, there is no energy and time uncertainty. Recall that the uncertainty principle for operators $hat A$ and $hat B$ have the form



$$ sigma _ A sigma _ B geq left| frac 1 2 i langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle right| = frac 1 2 | langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle | $$



Now there is no "time" operator in quantum mechanics thus, it doesn't make any sense to talk about "time" uncertainty. The best you can do is the following for a time independent operator $hat Q$:



$$Delta hat H Delta t geq frac hbar 2 , quad Delta t equiv frac Delta hat Q left $$



and this is what people mean, when they talk about Energy-time uncertainty. As you can see $Delta t$ really has nothing to do with the "uncertainty in time", but rather is telling you roughly speaking, how big the uncertainty of an opeartor is compared to the variation of its expectation value.



Second thing you should know is that virtual particles also do not exist. They are essentially calculational tools that one uses for perturbation theory. The idea that two electrons see each other, "throw" a "virtual photon" and therefore repulse each other is atrocious. This view comes from overinterpreting Feynman diagrams, which are essentially pictures that simplify combinatoric calculations in perturbation theory. There is a beautiful epsiode by BPS Spacetime about virtual particles, if you want to learn more about virtual particles.



However, the upshot is that the statement that "virtual particles break conservation of energy for a very short time because of energy-time uncertainty principle" is devoid of meaning, as there is no virtual particles nor energy-time uncertainty principle.






share|cite|improve this answer
















  • 1




    "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
    – Aaron Stevens
    2 days ago










  • This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago










  • I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago






  • 2




    @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago










  • there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
    – hyportnex
    2 days ago


















up vote
8
down vote













Virtual particles , as Gonenc Mogol says, are not particles, they are place holders for quantum numbers in the integrals necessary to calculate probabilities of interaction for quantum mechanical entities.



Here is a practical example :



eemumu



The virtual particle is labeled as a photon, but in effect it is a place holder for the photon quantum numbers within an integral over the variables shown in the graph, it means that the photon is off mass shell, and the mass varies within the integration which will give real numbers ( note the imaginary numbers) to be compared with experiment. The link gives details . What can be measured are the input particle four vectors and the output particles four vectors, the internal lines, as the $γ$ here, are not accessible to measurement.



The popularization of this mathematical concept creates the confusion about uncertainties and energy conservation. In order to have virtual "particles" there must always be real energy input by incoming real particles, and real energy output by outgoing real particles. In between it is mathematics and hand waving misinterpretations.






share|cite|improve this answer






















  • Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
    – Kosala
    2 days ago






  • 1




    internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
    – anna v
    2 days ago






  • 2




    @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago






  • 1




    Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
    – anna v
    2 days ago







  • 1




    . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
    – anna v
    2 days ago

















up vote
2
down vote













It really depends on what you mean by conservation of energy. The classical idea is that the total energy is constant at all times. However, once quantum mechanics was discovered, people realized that our classical idea of conversation of energy is really just an approximation of the quantum conservation principle. In quantum mechanics, conservation of energy is a statement about the expectation value (think the average value) of energy; it says that the expectation value of energy does not change. Quantum fluctations in the energy cancel out over time, so the average energy of an isolated system never changes.



Effectively, physicists reformulated their idea about conservation of energy to agree with quantum mechanics, because they found that the classical notion breaks down.



As for how virtual particles are created, I'm not exactly sure. Somebody who is more familiar with QFT can probably answer.






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Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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    3 Answers
    3






    active

    oldest

    votes








    3 Answers
    3






    active

    oldest

    votes









    active

    oldest

    votes






    active

    oldest

    votes








    up vote
    13
    down vote













    This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship.



    First of all, there is no energy and time uncertainty. Recall that the uncertainty principle for operators $hat A$ and $hat B$ have the form



    $$ sigma _ A sigma _ B geq left| frac 1 2 i langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle right| = frac 1 2 | langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle | $$



    Now there is no "time" operator in quantum mechanics thus, it doesn't make any sense to talk about "time" uncertainty. The best you can do is the following for a time independent operator $hat Q$:



    $$Delta hat H Delta t geq frac hbar 2 , quad Delta t equiv frac Delta hat Q left $$



    and this is what people mean, when they talk about Energy-time uncertainty. As you can see $Delta t$ really has nothing to do with the "uncertainty in time", but rather is telling you roughly speaking, how big the uncertainty of an opeartor is compared to the variation of its expectation value.



    Second thing you should know is that virtual particles also do not exist. They are essentially calculational tools that one uses for perturbation theory. The idea that two electrons see each other, "throw" a "virtual photon" and therefore repulse each other is atrocious. This view comes from overinterpreting Feynman diagrams, which are essentially pictures that simplify combinatoric calculations in perturbation theory. There is a beautiful epsiode by BPS Spacetime about virtual particles, if you want to learn more about virtual particles.



    However, the upshot is that the statement that "virtual particles break conservation of energy for a very short time because of energy-time uncertainty principle" is devoid of meaning, as there is no virtual particles nor energy-time uncertainty principle.






    share|cite|improve this answer
















    • 1




      "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
      – Aaron Stevens
      2 days ago










    • This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago










    • I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago










    • there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
      – hyportnex
      2 days ago















    up vote
    13
    down vote













    This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship.



    First of all, there is no energy and time uncertainty. Recall that the uncertainty principle for operators $hat A$ and $hat B$ have the form



    $$ sigma _ A sigma _ B geq left| frac 1 2 i langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle right| = frac 1 2 | langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle | $$



    Now there is no "time" operator in quantum mechanics thus, it doesn't make any sense to talk about "time" uncertainty. The best you can do is the following for a time independent operator $hat Q$:



    $$Delta hat H Delta t geq frac hbar 2 , quad Delta t equiv frac Delta hat Q left $$



    and this is what people mean, when they talk about Energy-time uncertainty. As you can see $Delta t$ really has nothing to do with the "uncertainty in time", but rather is telling you roughly speaking, how big the uncertainty of an opeartor is compared to the variation of its expectation value.



    Second thing you should know is that virtual particles also do not exist. They are essentially calculational tools that one uses for perturbation theory. The idea that two electrons see each other, "throw" a "virtual photon" and therefore repulse each other is atrocious. This view comes from overinterpreting Feynman diagrams, which are essentially pictures that simplify combinatoric calculations in perturbation theory. There is a beautiful epsiode by BPS Spacetime about virtual particles, if you want to learn more about virtual particles.



    However, the upshot is that the statement that "virtual particles break conservation of energy for a very short time because of energy-time uncertainty principle" is devoid of meaning, as there is no virtual particles nor energy-time uncertainty principle.






    share|cite|improve this answer
















    • 1




      "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
      – Aaron Stevens
      2 days ago










    • This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago










    • I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago










    • there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
      – hyportnex
      2 days ago













    up vote
    13
    down vote










    up vote
    13
    down vote









    This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship.



    First of all, there is no energy and time uncertainty. Recall that the uncertainty principle for operators $hat A$ and $hat B$ have the form



    $$ sigma _ A sigma _ B geq left| frac 1 2 i langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle right| = frac 1 2 | langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle | $$



    Now there is no "time" operator in quantum mechanics thus, it doesn't make any sense to talk about "time" uncertainty. The best you can do is the following for a time independent operator $hat Q$:



    $$Delta hat H Delta t geq frac hbar 2 , quad Delta t equiv frac Delta hat Q left $$



    and this is what people mean, when they talk about Energy-time uncertainty. As you can see $Delta t$ really has nothing to do with the "uncertainty in time", but rather is telling you roughly speaking, how big the uncertainty of an opeartor is compared to the variation of its expectation value.



    Second thing you should know is that virtual particles also do not exist. They are essentially calculational tools that one uses for perturbation theory. The idea that two electrons see each other, "throw" a "virtual photon" and therefore repulse each other is atrocious. This view comes from overinterpreting Feynman diagrams, which are essentially pictures that simplify combinatoric calculations in perturbation theory. There is a beautiful epsiode by BPS Spacetime about virtual particles, if you want to learn more about virtual particles.



    However, the upshot is that the statement that "virtual particles break conservation of energy for a very short time because of energy-time uncertainty principle" is devoid of meaning, as there is no virtual particles nor energy-time uncertainty principle.






    share|cite|improve this answer












    This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship.



    First of all, there is no energy and time uncertainty. Recall that the uncertainty principle for operators $hat A$ and $hat B$ have the form



    $$ sigma _ A sigma _ B geq left| frac 1 2 i langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle right| = frac 1 2 | langle [ hat A , hat B ] rangle | $$



    Now there is no "time" operator in quantum mechanics thus, it doesn't make any sense to talk about "time" uncertainty. The best you can do is the following for a time independent operator $hat Q$:



    $$Delta hat H Delta t geq frac hbar 2 , quad Delta t equiv frac Delta hat Q left $$



    and this is what people mean, when they talk about Energy-time uncertainty. As you can see $Delta t$ really has nothing to do with the "uncertainty in time", but rather is telling you roughly speaking, how big the uncertainty of an opeartor is compared to the variation of its expectation value.



    Second thing you should know is that virtual particles also do not exist. They are essentially calculational tools that one uses for perturbation theory. The idea that two electrons see each other, "throw" a "virtual photon" and therefore repulse each other is atrocious. This view comes from overinterpreting Feynman diagrams, which are essentially pictures that simplify combinatoric calculations in perturbation theory. There is a beautiful epsiode by BPS Spacetime about virtual particles, if you want to learn more about virtual particles.



    However, the upshot is that the statement that "virtual particles break conservation of energy for a very short time because of energy-time uncertainty principle" is devoid of meaning, as there is no virtual particles nor energy-time uncertainty principle.







    share|cite|improve this answer












    share|cite|improve this answer



    share|cite|improve this answer










    answered 2 days ago









    Gonenc Mogol

    2,79611332




    2,79611332







    • 1




      "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
      – Aaron Stevens
      2 days ago










    • This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago










    • I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago










    • there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
      – hyportnex
      2 days ago













    • 1




      "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
      – Aaron Stevens
      2 days ago










    • This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago










    • I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago










    • there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
      – hyportnex
      2 days ago








    1




    1




    "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
    – Aaron Stevens
    2 days ago




    "This is an excellent question, which clearly demonstrated the lie perpetuated by a lot of people, that the Energy time uncertainty relationship has the same meaning as the momentum and position uncertainty relationship." Thank you for this. One of my physics pet peeves.
    – Aaron Stevens
    2 days ago












    This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago




    This is a great answer. @Gonenc, thanks for taking time to answer my question. Honestly, when I first read about time energy uncertainty pair, that didn't make any sense to me. I understood the concept of momentum position uncertainty but relating the time energy uncertainty didn't make any sense to me. My first impression was that well, the uncertainty of time should be how much we are far from the expectation value. I believe what I understood was correct even though further reading confused me.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago












    I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago




    I was actually challenging my own idea since I am not a big physics brain. Anyway thanks for the explanation.
    – Kosala
    2 days ago




    2




    2




    @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago




    @AaronStevens Yeah if I have to rank the things in physics I find annoying, "E-t uncertainty relationship = x-p uncertainty relationship" would clearly come near the top. Sadly, I don't blame anyone (especially laypeople, physicists should know it better though), who believe in this statement, since even in a physics class for particle physics this statement was made.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago












    there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
    – hyportnex
    2 days ago





    there is of course the interpretation of $Delta t$ as being the uncertainty of the lifetime of the state that is being used to take the average $langle Q rangle$ and standard deviations.
    – hyportnex
    2 days ago











    up vote
    8
    down vote













    Virtual particles , as Gonenc Mogol says, are not particles, they are place holders for quantum numbers in the integrals necessary to calculate probabilities of interaction for quantum mechanical entities.



    Here is a practical example :



    eemumu



    The virtual particle is labeled as a photon, but in effect it is a place holder for the photon quantum numbers within an integral over the variables shown in the graph, it means that the photon is off mass shell, and the mass varies within the integration which will give real numbers ( note the imaginary numbers) to be compared with experiment. The link gives details . What can be measured are the input particle four vectors and the output particles four vectors, the internal lines, as the $γ$ here, are not accessible to measurement.



    The popularization of this mathematical concept creates the confusion about uncertainties and energy conservation. In order to have virtual "particles" there must always be real energy input by incoming real particles, and real energy output by outgoing real particles. In between it is mathematics and hand waving misinterpretations.






    share|cite|improve this answer






















    • Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 1




      internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
      – anna v
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago






    • 1




      Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
      – anna v
      2 days ago







    • 1




      . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
      – anna v
      2 days ago














    up vote
    8
    down vote













    Virtual particles , as Gonenc Mogol says, are not particles, they are place holders for quantum numbers in the integrals necessary to calculate probabilities of interaction for quantum mechanical entities.



    Here is a practical example :



    eemumu



    The virtual particle is labeled as a photon, but in effect it is a place holder for the photon quantum numbers within an integral over the variables shown in the graph, it means that the photon is off mass shell, and the mass varies within the integration which will give real numbers ( note the imaginary numbers) to be compared with experiment. The link gives details . What can be measured are the input particle four vectors and the output particles four vectors, the internal lines, as the $γ$ here, are not accessible to measurement.



    The popularization of this mathematical concept creates the confusion about uncertainties and energy conservation. In order to have virtual "particles" there must always be real energy input by incoming real particles, and real energy output by outgoing real particles. In between it is mathematics and hand waving misinterpretations.






    share|cite|improve this answer






















    • Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 1




      internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
      – anna v
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago






    • 1




      Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
      – anna v
      2 days ago







    • 1




      . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
      – anna v
      2 days ago












    up vote
    8
    down vote










    up vote
    8
    down vote









    Virtual particles , as Gonenc Mogol says, are not particles, they are place holders for quantum numbers in the integrals necessary to calculate probabilities of interaction for quantum mechanical entities.



    Here is a practical example :



    eemumu



    The virtual particle is labeled as a photon, but in effect it is a place holder for the photon quantum numbers within an integral over the variables shown in the graph, it means that the photon is off mass shell, and the mass varies within the integration which will give real numbers ( note the imaginary numbers) to be compared with experiment. The link gives details . What can be measured are the input particle four vectors and the output particles four vectors, the internal lines, as the $γ$ here, are not accessible to measurement.



    The popularization of this mathematical concept creates the confusion about uncertainties and energy conservation. In order to have virtual "particles" there must always be real energy input by incoming real particles, and real energy output by outgoing real particles. In between it is mathematics and hand waving misinterpretations.






    share|cite|improve this answer














    Virtual particles , as Gonenc Mogol says, are not particles, they are place holders for quantum numbers in the integrals necessary to calculate probabilities of interaction for quantum mechanical entities.



    Here is a practical example :



    eemumu



    The virtual particle is labeled as a photon, but in effect it is a place holder for the photon quantum numbers within an integral over the variables shown in the graph, it means that the photon is off mass shell, and the mass varies within the integration which will give real numbers ( note the imaginary numbers) to be compared with experiment. The link gives details . What can be measured are the input particle four vectors and the output particles four vectors, the internal lines, as the $γ$ here, are not accessible to measurement.



    The popularization of this mathematical concept creates the confusion about uncertainties and energy conservation. In order to have virtual "particles" there must always be real energy input by incoming real particles, and real energy output by outgoing real particles. In between it is mathematics and hand waving misinterpretations.







    share|cite|improve this answer














    share|cite|improve this answer



    share|cite|improve this answer








    edited 2 days ago

























    answered 2 days ago









    anna v

    154k7147441




    154k7147441











    • Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 1




      internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
      – anna v
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago






    • 1




      Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
      – anna v
      2 days ago







    • 1




      . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
      – anna v
      2 days ago
















    • Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
      – Kosala
      2 days ago






    • 1




      internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
      – anna v
      2 days ago






    • 2




      @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
      – Gonenc Mogol
      2 days ago






    • 1




      Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
      – anna v
      2 days ago







    • 1




      . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
      – anna v
      2 days ago















    Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
    – Kosala
    2 days ago




    Thanks for the comment. Did you mean internal lines or inclined lines?
    – Kosala
    2 days ago




    1




    1




    internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
    – anna v
    2 days ago




    internal, as the γ in the diagram. it connects to external legs through a vertex
    – anna v
    2 days ago




    2




    2




    @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago




    @Kosala How the Feynamn diagrams arise from QFT formalism is really esoteric for most of the people and uses relatively heavy machinery. So just think of "virtual particles" as a mathematical trick and not as a part of reality.
    – Gonenc Mogol
    2 days ago




    1




    1




    Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
    – anna v
    2 days ago





    Kosala this is an example of how we calculate real numbers to compare with exeriment. The experiment that is described by this particular diagram is the scattering of e+ on e- , two beams in a particle collider, to give a $μ^+$ $μ^-$ the muon energy and momentum measured in the detectors of the experiment. The theory is quantum field theory and gives a recipe for getting the numbers to compare to experiments using Feynman diagrams as a tool for easy mathematical organization
    – anna v
    2 days ago





    1




    1




    . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
    – anna v
    2 days ago




    . Virtual internal lines appear due to the need to conserve quantum numbers and other conservation laws, labeling functions that affect the integration by the term "virtual" to make clear that they are off mass shell, in the case above the mass not zero but varying according to the function shown.
    – anna v
    2 days ago










    up vote
    2
    down vote













    It really depends on what you mean by conservation of energy. The classical idea is that the total energy is constant at all times. However, once quantum mechanics was discovered, people realized that our classical idea of conversation of energy is really just an approximation of the quantum conservation principle. In quantum mechanics, conservation of energy is a statement about the expectation value (think the average value) of energy; it says that the expectation value of energy does not change. Quantum fluctations in the energy cancel out over time, so the average energy of an isolated system never changes.



    Effectively, physicists reformulated their idea about conservation of energy to agree with quantum mechanics, because they found that the classical notion breaks down.



    As for how virtual particles are created, I'm not exactly sure. Somebody who is more familiar with QFT can probably answer.






    share|cite|improve this answer








    New contributor




    Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.





















      up vote
      2
      down vote













      It really depends on what you mean by conservation of energy. The classical idea is that the total energy is constant at all times. However, once quantum mechanics was discovered, people realized that our classical idea of conversation of energy is really just an approximation of the quantum conservation principle. In quantum mechanics, conservation of energy is a statement about the expectation value (think the average value) of energy; it says that the expectation value of energy does not change. Quantum fluctations in the energy cancel out over time, so the average energy of an isolated system never changes.



      Effectively, physicists reformulated their idea about conservation of energy to agree with quantum mechanics, because they found that the classical notion breaks down.



      As for how virtual particles are created, I'm not exactly sure. Somebody who is more familiar with QFT can probably answer.






      share|cite|improve this answer








      New contributor




      Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.



















        up vote
        2
        down vote










        up vote
        2
        down vote









        It really depends on what you mean by conservation of energy. The classical idea is that the total energy is constant at all times. However, once quantum mechanics was discovered, people realized that our classical idea of conversation of energy is really just an approximation of the quantum conservation principle. In quantum mechanics, conservation of energy is a statement about the expectation value (think the average value) of energy; it says that the expectation value of energy does not change. Quantum fluctations in the energy cancel out over time, so the average energy of an isolated system never changes.



        Effectively, physicists reformulated their idea about conservation of energy to agree with quantum mechanics, because they found that the classical notion breaks down.



        As for how virtual particles are created, I'm not exactly sure. Somebody who is more familiar with QFT can probably answer.






        share|cite|improve this answer








        New contributor




        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        It really depends on what you mean by conservation of energy. The classical idea is that the total energy is constant at all times. However, once quantum mechanics was discovered, people realized that our classical idea of conversation of energy is really just an approximation of the quantum conservation principle. In quantum mechanics, conservation of energy is a statement about the expectation value (think the average value) of energy; it says that the expectation value of energy does not change. Quantum fluctations in the energy cancel out over time, so the average energy of an isolated system never changes.



        Effectively, physicists reformulated their idea about conservation of energy to agree with quantum mechanics, because they found that the classical notion breaks down.



        As for how virtual particles are created, I'm not exactly sure. Somebody who is more familiar with QFT can probably answer.







        share|cite|improve this answer








        New contributor




        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        share|cite|improve this answer



        share|cite|improve this answer






        New contributor




        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.









        answered 2 days ago









        Deeply Confused

        574




        574




        New contributor




        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.





        New contributor





        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.






        Deeply Confused is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
        Check out our Code of Conduct.













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