In this seminar, we will discuss the harmonic oscillator as a bridge between classical and quantum mechanics. After reviewing these (mostly familiar) concepts, we will move on to an analogous connection between the classical harmonic oscillator and classical field theory.
We will demonstrate how the classical harmonic oscillator is quantized and extend this idea to the quantization of a classical field. This naturally leads to our first quantum field theory describing free scalar fields.
We will also briefly review the two-dimensional harmonic oscillator to better understand the implications of Wigner’s theorem: the Hilbert space decomposes into irreducible representations of the symmetry group. From this perspective, we will discuss fields with spin and address why our four-dimensional universe appears to contain only fundamental particles with spin 0, 1, and 1/2.
Seminar will take place on 2 April 13:00 val. at NFTMC D401 auditorium.
About the speaker
Dr Tyler Corbett completed his PhD at Stony Brook University. He subsequently held postdoctoral positions at the University of Melbourne and as a Marie Curie Fellow at the Niels Bohr Institute.
All interested in quantum materials, semiconductor physics, and next-generation quantum platforms are welcome to attend.
Information by Center for Physical Sciences and Technology