Physics Program Presents
An Informational Approach to Identical Particles in Quantum Theory
Friday, December 11, 2015
Hegeman 107
12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Philip Goyal, University at Albany
A remarkable feature of quantum theory is that identical particles must be treated as indistinguishable if the theory is to give valid predictions. In the quantum formalism, indistinguishability is expressed via the symmetrization postulate, which restricts a system of identical particles to the set of symmetric states (`bosons') or the set of antisymmetric states (`fermions’).However, the precise connection between particle indistinguishability and the symmetrization postulate has not been clearly established. For example, a widely influential topological approach to identical particles implies that their behavior depends on the dimensionality of space, and that they generically exhibit so-called anyonic behavior in two dimensions.
In this talk, we show that the symmetrization postulate can be derived on the basis of a simple novel postulate. The key to the derivation is a strictly informational treatment of indistinguishability which prohibits the labeling of particles that cannot be experimentally distinguished from one another. The derivation implies that the symmetrization postulate admits no natural variants. In particular, the possibility that identical particles generically exhibit anyonic behaviour is excluded.
Journal Reference: "Informational Approach to Identical Particles in Quantum Theory", New J. Phys. 17 (2015) 013043
For more information, call 845-758-7302, or e-mail [email protected].
Time: 12:00 pm EST/GMT-5
Location: Hegeman 107