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Emergent Physics and Micro-Ontology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Margaret Morrison
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Abstract

This article examines ontological/dynamical aspects of emergence, specifically the micro-macro relation in cases of universal behavior. I discuss superconductivity as an emergent phenomenon, showing why microphysical features such as Cooper pairing are not necessary for deriving characteristic properties such as infinite conductivity. I claim that the difficulties surrounding the thermodynamic limit in explaining phase transitions can be countered by showing how renormalization group techniques facilitate an understanding of the physics behind the mathematics, enabling us to clarify epistemic and ontological aspects of emergence. I close with a discussion of the impact of these issues for questions concerning natural kinds.

Type
Research Article
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 79 , Issue 1 , January 2012 , pp. 141 - 166
Copyright
Copyright © The Philosophy of Science Association

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Footnotes

‡

I would like to thank the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council for research support. I would also like to thank Bob Batterman, Sorin Bangu, Paul Humphreys, John Norton, and three anonymous referees for extremely helpful comments.

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