Wick’s theorem
E59630
Wick’s theorem is a fundamental result in quantum field theory that expresses time-ordered products of field operators as sums of normal-ordered products with all possible contractions, forming the basis for deriving Feynman rules and diagrammatic expansions.
All labels observed (4)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Wick's theorem | 3 |
| Wick’s theorem canonical | 1 |
| Wick’s theorem for Grassmann fields | 1 |
| Wick’s theorem for thermal (finite-temperature) field theory | 1 |
How this entity was disambiguated
This entity first appeared as the object of triple T478328 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.
Target entity: Wick’s theorem Context triple: [Feynman rules, relatedTo, Wick’s theorem]
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A.
Feynman–Hellmann theorem
The Feynman–Hellmann theorem is a result in quantum mechanics that relates the derivative of an energy eigenvalue with respect to a parameter in the Hamiltonian to the expectation value of the corresponding derivative of the Hamiltonian.
-
B.
Feynman–Kac formula
The Feynman–Kac formula is a fundamental result connecting solutions of certain partial differential equations with expectations over stochastic processes, forming a bridge between quantum mechanics, probability theory, and mathematical finance.
-
C.
Feynman diagrams
Feynman diagrams are graphical representations used in quantum field theory to visualize and calculate particle interactions and processes.
-
D.
Faddeev’s axioms
Faddeev’s axioms are a set of conditions characterizing Shannon entropy in information theory, providing an alternative but equivalent axiomatization to the Shannon–Khinchin framework.
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E.
Born–Huang expansion
The Born–Huang expansion is a quantum mechanical method that systematically improves upon the Born–Oppenheimer approximation by including couplings between electronic and nuclear motions in molecular systems.
- F. None of above. chosen
- G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.
Target entity: Wick’s theorem Target entity description: Wick’s theorem is a fundamental result in quantum field theory that expresses time-ordered products of field operators as sums of normal-ordered products with all possible contractions, forming the basis for deriving Feynman rules and diagrammatic expansions.
-
A.
Feynman–Hellmann theorem
The Feynman–Hellmann theorem is a result in quantum mechanics that relates the derivative of an energy eigenvalue with respect to a parameter in the Hamiltonian to the expectation value of the corresponding derivative of the Hamiltonian.
-
B.
Feynman–Kac formula
The Feynman–Kac formula is a fundamental result connecting solutions of certain partial differential equations with expectations over stochastic processes, forming a bridge between quantum mechanics, probability theory, and mathematical finance.
-
C.
Feynman diagrams
Feynman diagrams are graphical representations used in quantum field theory to visualize and calculate particle interactions and processes.
-
D.
Faddeev’s axioms
Faddeev’s axioms are a set of conditions characterizing Shannon entropy in information theory, providing an alternative but equivalent axiomatization to the Shannon–Khinchin framework.
-
E.
Born–Huang expansion
The Born–Huang expansion is a quantum mechanical method that systematically improves upon the Born–Oppenheimer approximation by including couplings between electronic and nuclear motions in molecular systems.
- F. None of above. chosen
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | theorem in quantum field theory ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
bosonic fields
ⓘ
creation and annihilation operators ⓘ fermionic fields ⓘ free quantum fields ⓘ scalar fields ⓘ |
| assumes |
Gaussian (free) vacuum state
ⓘ
fields satisfy canonical (anti)commutation relations ⓘ |
| category | mathematical physics theorem ⓘ |
| centralConceptIn |
covariant perturbation theory
ⓘ
many-body quantum theory ⓘ |
| clarifies | relation between operator products and Feynman propagators ⓘ |
| defines | contraction as the difference between time-ordered and normal-ordered products of two fields ⓘ |
| describes | expansion of time-ordered products of field operators ⓘ |
| field | quantum field theory ⓘ |
| foundationFor |
Feynman diagrams
ⓘ
surface form:
Feynman diagram technique
path-integral diagrammatic expansions ⓘ |
| generalizedBy |
Wick’s theorem
self-linksurface differs
ⓘ
surface form:
Wick’s theorem for Grassmann fields
Wick’s theorem self-linksurface differs ⓘ
surface form:
Wick’s theorem for thermal (finite-temperature) field theory
|
| hasKeyConcept |
Green’s functions
ⓘ
propagators ⓘ vacuum expectation value ⓘ |
| historicalPeriod | mid-20th century ⓘ |
| holdsIn |
Heisenberg operator formulation of quantum mechanics
ⓘ
surface form:
Heisenberg picture of quantum field theory
|
| implies |
higher n-point Green’s functions of free fields factorize into products of two-point functions
ⓘ
time-ordered vacuum expectation values can be expressed in terms of two-point functions ⓘ |
| involvesOperation |
contraction of two field operators
ⓘ
normal-ordering operator ⓘ time-ordering operator ⓘ |
| mathematicalForm | T(ϕ₁…ϕₙ)=:ϕ₁…ϕₙ:+(all single contractions)+…+(all full contractions) ⓘ |
| namedAfter | Gian-Carlo Wick ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
Gaussian integration identities
ⓘ
Isserlis’ theorem in probability theory ⓘ |
| relatesConcept |
contractions of field operators
ⓘ
normal-ordered products ⓘ time-ordered products ⓘ |
| requires | vacuum expectation values of normal-ordered products vanish ⓘ |
| statesThat | a time-ordered product of free fields can be written as a sum of normal-ordered products with all possible contractions ⓘ |
| usedFor |
derivation of Feynman rules
ⓘ
diagrammatic expansions in quantum field theory ⓘ evaluation of S-matrix elements ⓘ normal-ordering of interaction Hamiltonians ⓘ perturbation theory in quantum field theory ⓘ systematic computation of n-point correlation functions ⓘ |
| usedIn |
canonical operator formalism of quantum field theory
ⓘ
derivation of propagators ⓘ proofs of equivalence between operator and path-integral formalisms ⓘ |
How these facts were elicited
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Subject: Wick’s theorem Description of subject: Wick’s theorem is a fundamental result in quantum field theory that expresses time-ordered products of field operators as sums of normal-ordered products with all possible contractions, forming the basis for deriving Feynman rules and diagrammatic expansions.
Referenced by (6)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.