From the Harmonic Oscillator to Quantum Field Theory: Particles and Fields

Speaker: Dr Tyler Corbett (University of Vienna)
Date: April 2, 2026
Time: 13:00–14:00
Location: Room D401

Description

In this seminar, we will discuss the harmonic oscillator as a bridge between classical and quantum mechanics. After reviewing these (mostly familiar) concepts, we will move on to an analogous connection between the classical harmonic oscillator and classical field theory.

We will demonstrate how the classical harmonic oscillator is quantized and extend this idea to the quantization of a classical field. This naturally leads to our first quantum field theory describing free scalar fields.

We will also briefly review the two-dimensional harmonic oscillator to better understand the implications of Wigner’s theorem: the Hilbert space decomposes into irreducible representations of the symmetry group. From this perspective, we will discuss fields with spin and address why our four-dimensional universe appears to contain only fundamental particles with spin 0, 1, and 1/2.

Who is this seminar for?

The seminar is intended for anyone with basic knowledge of quantum mechanics. Familiarity with the quantum harmonic oscillator and the concept of creation and annihilation operators is recommended.

However, the seminar should remain accessible and engaging to a broader audience.

About the Speaker

Dr Tyler Corbett completed his PhD at Stony Brook University. He subsequently held postdoctoral positions at the University of Melbourne and as a Marie Curie Fellow at the Niels Bohr Institute. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Vienna.