Foundations of Quantum Field Theory

Charles Sebens
Philosophy
UC San Diego

Our best understanding of the laws that govern fundamental particles is captured in the framework of quantum field theory. Although quantum field theory has achieved incredible predictive accuracy, there is no agreed upon physical picture of what’s happening in nature according to the theory or precise statement of the theory’s laws. This lack of clarity is inherited from one of quantum field theory’s precursors, non-relativistic quantum mechanics. Although there is no agreed upon way of understanding non-relativistic quantum mechanics, physicists and philosophers have developed a number of alternative interpretations of the theory. The most promising strategy for clarifying the foundations of quantum field theory is to extend our best existing interpretations of non-relativistic quantum mechanics. This project focused on extending two interpretations which include particles following definite trajectories in addition to, or in lieu of, the quantum wave function: Bohemian mechanics and Newtonian quantum mechanics (a.k.a. many interacting worlds). This work utilizes the methods of both philosophy (especially metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of science) and theoretical physics.