Quantum field theory (QFT) provides a comprehensive framework for describing the fundamental interactions of matter and radiation. In the context of atom‐field interactions, QFT elucidates how atoms ...

Quantum field theory marries the ideas of other quantum theories to depict all particles as “excitations” that arise in underlying fields. The British physicist Paul Dirac started the ball rolling in ...

Quantum field theory is notoriously complicated, built from mind-bendingly abstract mathematics. But are the underlying rules of reality really so far from human intuition? Or are physicists just ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. The Universe is out there, waiting for you to discover it. If you wanted to answer the question of what's truly fundamental in ...

Mean-field theory and semiclassical methods constitute vital frameworks in contemporary quantum mechanics. By replacing the intricate web of particle interactions with an average or “mean” field, mean ...

Philosophy of Science, Vol. 66, Supplement. Proceedings of the 1998 Biennial Meetings of the Philosophy of Science Association. Part I: Contributed Papers (Sep., 1999), pp. S170-S184 (15 pages) The ...

Mathematicians have struggled to understand the moduli space of graphs. A new paper uses tools from physics to peek inside. “That’s a super hard problem. It’s amazing they were able to,” said Dan ...

At the subatomic level, particles interact not only with one another, but with the quantum fields inherent to space, both owing to the presence of charged sources and also to the quantum vacuum of ...

At long last, a unified theory combining gravity with the other fundamental forces—electromagnetism and the strong and weak nuclear forces—is within reach. Bringing gravity into the fold has been the ...

For decades, physicists have faced one of science’s greatest puzzles: merging quantum mechanics, which describes tiny particles, with general relativity, which explains the universe’s vast structures.

A new physics paper takes a step toward creating a long-sought "theory of everything" by uniting gravity with the quantum world. However, the new theory remains far from being proven observationally.