Published June 22, 2018 | Version v1
Journal article

The Kirillov picture for the Wigner particle

  • 1. Departamento de Física Teórica, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza 50009 (Spain)
  • 2. Dipartimento di Fisica 'E. Pancini', Università di Napoli Federico II, Napoli (Italy)
  • 3. Escuela de Matemática, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José 11501 (Costa Rica)

Description

We discuss the Kirillov method for massless Wigner particles, usually (mis)named 'continuous spin' or 'infinite spin' particles. These appear in Wigner's classification of the unitary representations of the Poincaré group, labelled by elements of the enveloping algebra of the Poincaré Lie algebra. Now, the coadjoint orbit procedure introduced by Kirillov is a prelude to quantization. Here we exhibit for those particles the classical Casimir functions on phase space, in parallel to quantum representation theory. A good set of position coordinates are identified on the coadjoint orbits of the Wigner particles; the stabilizer subgroups and the symplectic structures of these orbits are also described. (paper)

Availability note (English)

Available from http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1751-8121/aac3b3

Additional details

Identifiers

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Journal of Physics. A, Mathematical and Theoretical (Online)
Journal Volume
51
Journal Issue
25
Journal Page Range
[19 p.]
ISSN
1751-8121

INIS

Country of Publication
United Kingdom
Country of Input or Organization
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INIS RN
52022936
Subject category
S71: CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS;
Descriptors DEI
LIE GROUPS; ORBITS; PARTICLES; PHASE SPACE; QUANTIZATION; SPIN; WIGNER THEORY
Descriptors DEC
ANGULAR MOMENTUM; MATHEMATICAL SPACE; PARTICLE PROPERTIES; SPACE; SYMMETRY GROUPS