Functional representation for fermionic quantum fields

R. Floreanini and R. Jackiw
Phys. Rev. D 37, 2206 – Published 15 April 1988
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Abstract

A functional representation for fermionic quantum fields is developed in analogy to familiar results for bosonic fields. The infinite Clifford algebra of the field anticommutator is realized reducibly on a Grassmann functional space. On this space, transformation groups may be represented without normal ordering with respect to a Fock vacuum, and a projective representation for the two-dimensional conformal group is found, which is compared to the corresponding representation in terms of bosonic fields. When a quadratic Hamiltonian for the Fermi fields is posited, a Fock space can be constructed after a prescription for filling the Dirac sea is selected. Different filling prescriptions lead to inequivalent Fock spaces within the functional space. Explicit eigenfunctionals exhibit the peculiarities of fermionic field theory, such as fractional charge, Berry’s phase, and anomalies.

  • Received 17 August 1987

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.37.2206

©1988 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

R. Floreanini and R. Jackiw

  • Center for Theoretical Physics, Laboratory for Nuclear Science Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

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Issue

Vol. 37, Iss. 8 — 15 April 1988

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