All Questions
Tagged with mp.mathematical-physics pr.probability
158 questions
94
votes
1
answer
11k
views
The mathematical theory of Feynman integrals
It is well known that Feynman integrals are one of the tools that physicists have and mathematicians haven't, sadly.
Arguably, they are the most important such tool. Briefly, the question I'd like to ...
- 23.5k
74
votes
16
answers
8k
views
Geometric / physical / probabilistic interpretations of Riemann zeta($n>1$)?
What are some physical, geometric, or probabilistic interpretations of the values of the Riemann zeta function at the positive integers greater than one?
I've found some examples:
1) In MO-Q111339 ...
63
votes
3
answers
7k
views
A roadmap to Hairer's theory for taming infinities
Background
Martin Hairer gave recently some beautiful lectures in Israel on "taming infinities," namely on finding a mathematical theory that supports the highly successful computations from quantum ...
- 24.7k
54
votes
4
answers
9k
views
Why is Quantum Field Theory so topological?
I understand that my question suffers from my lack of knowledge about the field, but as a mathematician without much knowledge of physics I have been wondering much about the following and I always ...
36
votes
0
answers
2k
views
Correspondence between eigenvalue distributions of random unitary and random orthogonal matrices
In the course of a physics problem (arXiv:1206.6687), I stumbled on a curious correspondence between the eigenvalue distributions of the matrix product $U\bar{U}$, with $U$ a random unitary matrix and ...
- 188k
35
votes
7
answers
6k
views
Why is conformal invariance only possible for massless theories?
I'm conscious that this isn't necessarily a research level question, but I've asked this question on mathstackexchange, and received no answer. So I'm trying it here.
A usual mantra in field theories ...
- 914
35
votes
5
answers
11k
views
What mathematical treatment is there on the renormalization group flow in a space of Lagrangians?
What mathematical treatment is there on the renormalization group flow in a space of Lagrangians?
- 921
27
votes
2
answers
812
views
What is the right notion of self-dual (two-dimensional) percolation in R^4?
For a lattice in $\mathbb{R}^2$, if we include each edge independently with probability $p$ (i.e. bond percolation), it is well known that there is a critical probability $0 < p_c < 1$ depending ...
- 7,857
22
votes
3
answers
6k
views
What is quantum Brownian motion?
It seems that the current state of quantum Brownian motion is ill-defined. The best survey I can find is this one by László Erdös, but the closest the quantum Brownian motion comes to appearing is in ...
- 8,512
21
votes
2
answers
981
views
What is the optimal speed to approach a red light?
Suppose from distance $d$, while driving at speed $v_0$, I notice that there's a red traffic light in front of me. Suppose that there are no other vehicles, my vehicle has perfect brakes, my maximum ...
- 19k
21
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Uncertainty principle and Cramer-Rao bound - is there relation?
Just out of curiosity.
The two things sounds a little bit similar - 1) Uncertainty principle 2) Cramer-Rao bound.
Saying that we cannot measure something with certain accuracy.
However looking closer ...
- 24.9k
20
votes
0
answers
3k
views
+200
What does a product of many Gaussian matrices converge to?
Let $A$ be a product of $n$ $d\times d$ matrices with IID standard Gaussian entries and consider the value of $g(x)=x f(x)$ where $f(x)$ is the density of squared singular values of $A/\|A\|$.
Is ...
- 2,252
19
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Horst Knörrer's Permutation Cancellation Problem
The Problem:
The following question of Horst Knörrer is a sort of toy problem coming from mathematical physics.
Let $x_1, x_2, \dots, x_n$ and $y_1,y_2,\dots, y_n$ be two sets of real numbers.
We ...
- 24.7k
18
votes
0
answers
310
views
Profiles of very high dimensional functions
This question comes from trying to understand the recent success of deep neural nets. Neural networks just (crudely speaking) create a very complicated function of very many variables, and then ...
- 96.4k
15
votes
1
answer
660
views
Which limit to take as a key applied math decision
The Borel-Kolmogorov paradox refers to situations where non-uniqueness in the notion of conditioning on a set of measure zero leads to apparent contradictions. As a formal matter, one requires ...
13
votes
7
answers
1k
views
Probabilistic (and other mathematical) methods of physics without the physics?
Many of the methods of physics are vastly more general than their use in that discipline. For example, information theory overlaps with a lot of statistical mechanics, and the latter actually ...
12
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Correlations in last-passage percolation
Consider the last passage percolation model on $\mathbb{Z}^2$ with, say, geometric weights on each edge. By a landmark result of Johansson (http://arxiv.org/abs/math/9903134), we know that if $T_n(\...
11
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Free Boson Correlator $ \langle X(z)X(w) \rangle =- \ln |z - w| $
In physics papers, the massless free boson has a definition involving an action:
$$ S(X) = \frac{1}{8\pi} \int d\sigma^2\, \partial X \overline{\partial X}$$
The random functions $X(z)$ are ...
- 22.8k
11
votes
2
answers
1k
views
How should a mathematician approach the physics literature concerning percolation?
I would like to read some of the physics literature on two-dimensional percolation, however in attempting this I have run into two problems. (1) Physics papers on percolation are (relatively) hard ...
- 18.7k
11
votes
2
answers
914
views
How do you know that you have succeeded-Constructive Quantum Field Theory and Lagrangian
Quantum Field Theory is a branch of mathematical physics which is begging for a better understanding.
In fact there are no rigorous constructions of interacting QFT in four dimensions. By a rigorous
...
- 9,330
11
votes
2
answers
353
views
Exponential decay of voltage potential difference
Consider the following adjacency matrix of a complete graph:
$$A=(e^{-|i-j|})_{1\leq i\neq j\leq n}$$
with 0 on the diagonal. Let $D=diag\{d_1,...,d_n\}$ be the degree matrix where $d_i=\sum_{j\neq i}...
- 1,495
11
votes
1
answer
626
views
Formula for $U(N)$ integration wanted
Before you jump on the "duplicate" buttom, let me say that I do not want to hear about Weingarten calculus and I do not want to see a character of the symmetric group.
What I would like is a formula ...
11
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Integration over the orthogonal group
Let $O(N)$ be the orthogonal group, and $a,b,c\in\mathbb N$. The question is:
$$\int_{O(N)}U_{11}^aU_{22}^bU_{33}^cdU=?$$
This is quite a tricky question:
(1) The first thought would go to ...
- 1,363
11
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Question about a Limit of Gaussian Integrals and how it relates to Path Integration (if at all)?
I have come across a limit of Gaussian integrals in the literature and am wondering if this is a well known result.
The background for this problem comes from the composition of Brownian motion and ...
- 265
10
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Why does Riesz's Representation Theorem apply in quantum mechanics?
$\DeclareMathOperator\tr{tr}$One begins with a quantum mechanical system, i.e. a unital $C^*$-algebra $A$.
It is common to begin the discussion with embedding $A$ into the algebra of bounded operators ...
- 2,071
10
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Proving the Replica Trick works
The replica trick attempts to calculate the expectation of the logarithm $X=\log(Z)$ of a random variable $Z$. The wikipedia article describes the logarithm as the limit
$$
\log(Z) = \lim_{n\to 0}\...
- 385
10
votes
2
answers
2k
views
When is a space of measures a measurable space?
Let $X$ denote a measurable space, that is, a set equipped with a $\sigma$-algebra $\Sigma(X)$. Let $M(X)$ denote the space of real-valued measures over $X$. This is a vector space over the real ...
- 8,512
10
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Applications of Banach-Tarski Paradox to Probability Theory?
I was just curious, since the B-T paradox is a measure theoretic result, if there are any consequences of this paradox in probability theory? Also, is there is a way of stating the B-T paradox in the ...
- 137
10
votes
1
answer
337
views
What are the predictive implications of conditional non-commutative probability?
To simplify things, let's consider the Hilbert approach to quantum probability over a finite dimensional vector space $V$ of dimension $n$.
In this context a state $S$ is a positive semi-definite ...
- 323
9
votes
1
answer
966
views
A necessary condition for differential entropy to be finite
An ensemble corresponding to a probability distribution usually has finite free energy so it is not a great loss of generality to assume that the ensemble also has finite energy in following ...
- 8,071
8
votes
3
answers
2k
views
References request: constructive quantum field theory
I am taking a course this semester on QFT, which deals much with constructive quantum field theory. Some of its topics so far involve relationships between non-Gaussian probability measures,Feynman ...
- 663
8
votes
3
answers
2k
views
randomness in nature [closed]
What is the explanation of the apparent randomness of high-level phenomena in nature?
For example the distribution of females vs. males in a population (I am referring to randomness in terms of the ...
- 307
8
votes
1
answer
993
views
Path integral and harmonic oscillator
Maybe this is not a research level question. I post it because I heard that the path integral can be rigorous by Brownian motion. But my knowledge of probability is so limited.
If $$L=\frac{1}{2}(-\...
8
votes
1
answer
527
views
A q,t-extension of Plancherel Measure thru Yang-Mills Theory ?
Buried in the physics paper by Nekrasov and Okounkov, a strange identity is proven:
$$ \prod_{n > 0} (1 - q^n)^{\mu^2-1} = \sum_{\mathbf{k}} q^{|\mathbf{k}|} \prod_{\square \in k} \left( 1 - \frac{\...
- 22.8k
8
votes
0
answers
195
views
What are the tempered Gibbs measures of classical $\phi^4$-theory?
I consider classical $\phi^4$-theory on the lattice. The model is defined in finite volume with Hamiltonian
\begin{align*}
H(\phi) = - \sum_{x \sim y} J_{x,y} \phi_x \phi_y
\end{align*}
and a-priori ...
- 1,054
7
votes
3
answers
830
views
What is the link between the Domino Tilings and the Ising Model?
Is there a link between the theory of Domino Tilings and the Ising Model? In the global qualitative sense that physicists use, the answer is "yes". The connections could go like this:
The dimer ...
- 22.8k
7
votes
2
answers
626
views
What is the strongest known RSW result in planar percolation?
One of the weakest estimates conjectured to hold for critical planar percolation models (and proved in many cases) is the so-called RSW estimate. RSW estimate is the statement that the probability of ...
- 18.7k
7
votes
0
answers
269
views
Looking for the eigenfunctions of the operator $T$ on $L_2(\mathbb R^+)$ defined by $Tf(x)=\int_0^\infty e^{-(x+y)^2/2}f(y)\,dy$
I'm looking to find a basis of eigenfunctions (and the corresponding eigenvectors) for the operator $T$ on $L_2(\mathbb R^+)$ defined by:
$$
Tf(x)=\int_0^\infty e^{-(x+y)^2/2}f(y)\,dy
$$
This operator ...
- 109
7
votes
0
answers
579
views
Guises of the noncrossing partitions (NCPs)
From "Noncrossing partitions in surprising locations" by Jon McCammond:
Certain mathematical structures make a habit of reoccuring in the most diverse list of settings. Some obvious ...
- 10.5k
7
votes
0
answers
497
views
Extreme unitary minimal models of conformal field theory
Some of the best understood conformal field theories are the 2D unitary minimal models $\mathcal{M}(m+1,m)$ indexed by the integer $m\ge 2$ and with central charge
$$
c=1-\frac{6}{m(m+1)}\ .
$$
I ...
7
votes
0
answers
627
views
Elementary proof of lack of phase transition in Ising models with external fields
I have a question about the phase transitions in the Ising model in the presence of a (constant) external magnetic field. I will state the question on $\mathbb Z^2$ for simplicity. A definition of the ...
- 23.2k
6
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Can I relate the L1 norm of a function to its Fourier expansion?
I would like to express the integral of the absolute value of a real-valued function $f$ (over a finite interval) in terms of the Fourier coefficients of $f$. Failing that, I would like to know of any ...
- 185
6
votes
2
answers
481
views
Infinite clusters for loopless percolation
I feel like this is maybe an incredibly trivial problem, and I'm just missing something. I may also be describing a well-known model that I cannot find the name for, so any comment/suggestion is ...
- 213
6
votes
2
answers
1k
views
In what precise sense is quantum (i.e., non-commutative) probability not expressable in terms of classical probability?
The quantum set-up has many settings, so let's fix some definitions. I will be taking the Hilbert space approach with a minor modification that I will make explicit.
We begin with a Hilbert space $\...
- 323
6
votes
1
answer
274
views
Spectrum asymptotics for a product of $k$ random matrices?
How does the spectrum of a product of $k$ random matrices behave around 0?
In particular, I'm wondering if the CDF of squared singular values behaves as $x^{\frac{1}{k+1}}$ around 0. The result for $k=...
- 2,252
6
votes
2
answers
904
views
Gaussian measure on function spaces
I'm reading this classic work and I'd like to get deeper inside some of its techniques. In particular, the authors state: "We construct a Gaussian measure $d\mu_{0}(\phi)$ on a measure space of ...
- 3,515
6
votes
2
answers
3k
views
What's the probability distribution of a deterministic signal or how to marginalize dynamical systems? (functional integrals in probability theory)
Because I still have no idea how it is possible for me to write down seemingly important equations ... that don't make any sense (at least for me) and because I haven't got any helpful comment so far, ...
- 1,026
6
votes
3
answers
423
views
Infinite electrical networks and possible connections with LERW
I've been exposed to various problems involving infinite circuits but never seen an extensive treatment on the subject. The main problem I am referring to is
Given a lattice L, we turn it into a ...
- 85.6k
6
votes
1
answer
1k
views
A set of questions on continuous Gaussian Free Fields (GFF)
As I said in my previous posts, I'm trying to teach myself some rigorous statistical mechanics/statistical field theory and I'm primarily interested in $\varphi^{4}$, but I know that the absense of ...
- 3,515
6
votes
1
answer
708
views
Reformulation - Construction of thermodynamic limit for GFF
I've posted a question about the thermodynamic limit for Gaussian Free Fields (GFF) a couple days ago and I haven't got any answers yet but I kept thinking about it and I thought it would be better to ...
- 3,515