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12 - Statistics, Symmetry, and the Spin-Statistics Theorem

from Part I - General Properties of Fields; Scalars and Gauge Fields

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2019

Horaƫiu Năstase
Affiliation:
Universidade Estadual Paulista, São Paulo
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Summary

We define statistics of quantum mechanical particles, obtaining the Bose–Einstein and Fermi–Dirac varieties of indistinguishable particles. After finding the rotation and Lorentz matrices in different Lorentz representations, we describe the spin-statistics theorem, relating fermions with half-integer spin and bosons with integer spin. We explain two simple proofs and say some words on two others. We end by discussing symmetries in more generality, and we discuss the fact that internal symmetries must commute with spacetime ones, due to the Coleman–Mandula theorem.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2019

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