The Evolution of Quantum Field Theory: From QED to Grand Unification

DOI10.1142/9789814733519_0001zbMATH Open1360.81010arXiv1503.05007OpenAlexW3103208467WikidataQ57424048 ScholiaQ57424048MaRDI QIDQ2979728FDOQ2979728

Authors: Gerard 't Hooft 

Publication date: 26 April 2017

Published in: Advanced Series on Directions in High Energy Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Abstract: In the early 1970s, after a slow start, and lots of hurdles, Quantum Field Theory emerged as the superior doctrine for understanding the interactions between relativistic sub-atomic particles. After the conditions for a relativistic field theoretical model to be renormalizable were established, there were two other developments that quickly accelerated acceptance of this approach: first the Brout-Englert-Higgs mechanism, and then asymptotic freedom. Together, these gave us a complete understanding of the perturbative sector of the theory, enough to give us a detailed picture of what is now usually called the Standard Model. Crucial for this understanding were the strong indications and encouragements provided by numerous experimental findings. Subsequently, non-perturbative features of the quantum field theories were addressed, and the first proposals for completely unified quantum field theories were launched. Since the use of continuous symmetries of all sorts, together with other topics of advanced mathematics, were recognised to be of crucial importance, many new predictions were pointed out, such as the Higgs particle, supersymmetry and baryon number violation. There are still many challenges ahead.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/1503.05007

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Mathematics Subject Classification ID

History of mathematics in the 20th century (01A60) Model quantum field theories (81T10) Supersymmetric field theories in quantum mechanics (81T60) Electromagnetic interaction; quantum electrodynamics (81V10) Gravitational interaction in quantum theory (81V17) Unified quantum theories (81V22) Quantization of the gravitational field (83C45) History of quantum theory (81-03)

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