Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The rise of classical field theory
- Part I The geometrical programme for fundamental interactions
- Part II The quantum field programme for fundamental interactions
- 6 The rise of quantum theory
- 7 The formation of the conceptual foundations of quantum field theory
- 8 The quantum field programme (QFP)
- Part III The gauge field programme for fundamental interactions
- Appendices
- Bibliography
- Name index
- Subject index
7 - The formation of the conceptual foundations of quantum field theory
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 January 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The rise of classical field theory
- Part I The geometrical programme for fundamental interactions
- Part II The quantum field programme for fundamental interactions
- 6 The rise of quantum theory
- 7 The formation of the conceptual foundations of quantum field theory
- 8 The quantum field programme (QFP)
- Part III The gauge field programme for fundamental interactions
- Appendices
- Bibliography
- Name index
- Subject index
Summary
Quantum field theory (QFT) can be analyzed in terms of its mathematical structure, its conceptual system for physical descriptions, or its basic ontology. The analysis can be done logically or historically. In this chapter, only the genesis of the conceptual foundations of QFT relevant to its basic ontology will be treated; no discussion of its mathematical structures or its epistemological underpinnings will be given. Some conceptual problems, such as those related to probability and measurement, will be discussed, but only because of their relevance to the basic ontology of QFT, rather than their intrinsic philosophical interest. Here, by basic ontology I mean the irreducible entities that QFT is invented to describe. The often mentioned candidates for the basic ontology of QFT, in fact of the physical world, are the discrete particle and the continuous field. Another possible candidate (the spacetime point) has also been suggested recently (Redhead, 1983). Since the aim of this chapter is to analyze the historical process in which the conceptual foundations of QFT were laid down, rather than the logical structure of QFT which philosophers of the present day treat, no discussion of the last possibility will be given.
The content of this chapter involves the formation and interpretation, in a roughly chronological order, of the concepts of the wave function, quantization, quantization of the field, the vacuum, interactions between fields, and renormalization. The first two topics will be discussed in relation to the quantization of the field, with their role being taken as the starting point of the conceptual development of QFT.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Conceptual Developments of 20th Century Field Theories , pp. 144 - 209Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1997