Volume dependence of the energy spectrum in massive quantum field theories. I: Stable particle states (Q1819801)

The author considers massive quantum field theories enclosed in a box (size L) with periodic boundary conditions and studies how the rest masses of stable (point like) scalar particles are shifted by finite volume effects. A formula relating m(L) with m (infinite volume mass) is proved in detail using Feynman diagrams. The proof is based upon careful analysis of the large L behavior of self energy Feynman integrals. Qualitatively, the result shows that the finite size effect on the stable particle masses falls off exponentially with a rate which depends on the spectrum of light particles. Bound states are also considered. For bound states, calculation of \(\Delta\) m is very similar to the calculation in the stable particle case. An independent calculation of this volume dependence of bound state masses in the nonrelativistic limit provides a non-trivial check on the quantum field calculations.