Colloquium – Paul Romatschke

Paul Romatschke, University of Colorado Boulder

Life on an Endless Hill: Making Sense of Up-Side-Down Potentials in Quantum Mechanics and High Energy Physics

In classical physics, unbounded (or “up-side-down”) potentials do not allow for a stable ground state. As a consequence, unbounded potentials have often been dismissed as not viable for proper unitary quantum theories, including quantum gravity. Historically, we have learned that the quantum world often contradicts dearly held beliefs based on classical physics. By contrast, mathematics has been recognized as a good guide even when classical intuition fails. In this talk, I will use well-developed mathematics to explore physical systems with up-side-down and non-Hermitian potentials in quantum mechanics and quantum field theory, finding that — contrary to widely held and endlessly repeated beliefs — these systems often do in fact possess a stable ground state in the quantum world. This realization challenges statements that have become pillars of high energy physics, such as the quantum triviality of the Higgs field and reserving asymptotic freedom only for non-Abelian gauge theories. It’s a revolution in the making, so please join me for a “sneak-preview” of what’s coming.

Mar 7, 2024 @ 4:00pm Central in Stevenson 4327; reception beforehand at 3:30pm in Stevenson 6333

Host: J-F Paquet