In the previous post, I posited that the difference between radiation pressure and charge force, both of which are mediated by photons, is due to different properties of photons. Radiation pressure is due to the ability of massless photons transferring angular momentum from a source such as atomic electron state changes to a destination (which also could be an atomic electron that changes state). Charge force cannot be the result of a momentum exchange, otherwise energy would not be conserved–charge forces exert continuously in all directions simultaneously. Nor could you have attractive forces, since momentum transfer is observably always positive, not negative. To address the fact that we know charge forces are mediated by photons, but cannot be transferring energy, I had posited that quantum interference (which redirects particle paths without expending energy) is responsible for charge force. This scheme does allow for negative momentum transfer necessary for charge attraction. However, I now see that this approach cannot work, at least in the way I have proposed.
A problem with this idea is that quantum interference requires identical frequency waves from two sources, or from the same source but via different paths. I can readily model charge attraction via quantum interference in my simulator (see many previous posts on attraction force simulations). However, this approach gets into trouble for two reasons–one is that charge is constant, but waves from a source particle can Doppler shift if the source is moving relative to the destination. If charge forces are due to quantum interference, the wave and the destination particle will have to have the same frequency when they meet, and Doppler shifting of a moving source particle means they won’t have the same frequency and won’t interfere.
The bigger problem with this approach comes from trying to explain the central force behaviour of charge. I had assumed that charge force, which decreases as the square of the distance from the source, was a result of the granular distribution of photons from the source. Any given neighborhood volume at a radius r from a source is going to occupy a percentage of the total surface area at that radius r. If there is a fixed emission of photons from the source, there will be a fixed distribution of photons within a surface area that varies as r^2, hence the central force dropoff of charge force (a generalization results than any system with quantized particles will observe central force behaviour). If the charge force is mediated by quantized photons, this works–but that cannot be, because then you have energy transfer that would dissipate the source mass. But if quantum interference of waves is the cause of charge force, then you don’t have particle quantization needed to get the central force 1/r^2 dropoff in charge field strength.
This is a variation of the quantum wave vs. particle dilemma. Photons act like waves or particles depending on the circumstances. However, neither particles (quantized photons) nor waves (quantum interference) explain charge forces. It appears to be some combination of both. Further work is needed before a satisfactory answer is found.
Agemoz
Tags: particles, physics, quantum, relativity
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