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In physics, a virtual particle is an explanatory conceptual entity that is found in mathematical calculations about quantum field theory. It refers to mathematical terms that have some appearance of representing particles inside a subatomic process such as a collision. Virtual particles, however, do not appear directly amongst the observable and detectable input and output quantities of those calculations, which refer only to actual, as distinct from virtual, particles. Virtual particle terms represent "particles" that are said to be 'off mass shell'. For example, they can progress backwards in time, can have apparent mass very different from their regular particle namesake's, and can travel faster than light. That is to say, when looked at individually, they appear to be able to violate basic laws of physics. Regular particles of course never do so. On the other hand, any particle that is actually observed never precisely satisfies the conditions theoretically imposed on regular particles. Virtual particles occur in combinations that mutually more or less nearly cancel from the actual output quantities, so that no actual violation of the laws of physics occurs in completed processes. Often the virtual-particle virtual "events" appear to occur close to one another in time, for example within the time scale of a collision, so that they are virtually and apparently "short-lived". If the mathematical terms that are interpreted as representing virtual particles are omitted from the calculations, the result is an approximation that may or may not be near the correct and accurate answer obtained from the proper full calculation.〔Peskin, M.E., Schroeder, D.V. (1995). ''An Introduction to Quantum Field Theory'', Westview Press, ISBN 0-201-50397-2, p. 80.〕〔Mandl, F., Shaw, G. (1984/2002). ''Quantum Field Theory'', John Wiley & Sons, Chichester UK, revised edition, ISBN 0-471-94186-7, pp. 56, 176.〕 Quantum theory is different from classical theory. The difference is in accounting for the inner workings of subatomic processes. Classical physics cannot account for such. It was pointed out by Heisenberg that what "actually" or "really" occurs inside such subatomic processes as collisions is not directly observable and no unique and physically definite visualization is available for it. Quantum mechanics has the specific merit of by-passing speculation about such inner workings. It restricts itself to what is actually observable and detectable. Virtual particles are conceptual devices that in a sense try to by-pass Heisenberg's insight, by offering putative or virtual explanatory visualizations for the inner workings of subatomic processes. A virtual particle does not necessarily appear to carry the same mass as the corresponding real particle. This is because it appears as "short-lived" and "transient", so that the uncertainty principle allows it to appear not to conserve energy and momentum. The longer a virtual particle appears to "live", the closer its characteristics come to those of an actual particle. Virtual particles appear in many processes, including particle scattering and Casimir forces. In quantum field theory, even classical forces — such as the electromagnetic repulsion or attraction between two charges — can be thought of as due to the exchange of many virtual photons between the charges. Virtual particles appear in calculations of subatomic interactions, but never as asymptotic states or indices to the scattering matrix. A subatomic process involving virtual particles is schematically representable by a Feynman diagram in which they are represented by internal lines. Antiparticles and quasiparticles should not be confused with virtual particles or virtual antiparticles. Many physicists believe that, because of its intrinsically perturbative character, the concept of virtual particles is often confusing and misleading, and is thus best avoided. ==Properties== The concept of virtual particles arises in the perturbation theory of quantum field theory, an approximation scheme in which interactions (in essence, forces) between actual particles are calculated in terms of exchanges of virtual particles. Such calculations are often performed using schematic representations known as Feynman diagrams, in which virtual particles appear as internal lines. By expressing the interaction in terms of the exchange of a virtual particle with four-momentum q, where q is given by the difference between the four-momenta of the particles entering and leaving the interaction vertex, both momentum and energy are conserved at the interaction vertices of the Feynman diagram. A virtual particle does not precisely obey the energy–momentum relation . Its kinetic energy may not have the usual relationship to velocity–indeed, it can be negative. This is expressed by the phrase ''off mass shell''.〔 The probability amplitude for a virtual particle to exist tends to be canceled out by destructive interference over longer distances and times. Quantum tunnelling may be considered a manifestation of virtual particle exchanges. The range of forces carried by virtual particles is limited by the uncertainty principle, which regards energy and time as conjugate variables; thus, virtual particles of larger mass have more limited range. Written in the usual mathematical notations, in the equations of physics, there is no mark of the distinction between virtual and actual particles. The amplitude that a virtual particle exists interferes with the amplitude for its non-existence, whereas for an actual particle the cases of existence and non-existence cease to be coherent with each other and do not interfere any more. In the quantum field theory view, actual particles are viewed as being detectable excitations of underlying quantum fields. Virtual particles are also viewed as excitations of the underlying fields, but appear only as forces, not as detectable particles. They are "temporary" in the sense that they appear in calculations, but are not detected as single particles. Thus, in mathematical terms, they never appear as indices to the scattering matrix, which is to say, they never appear as the observable inputs and outputs of the physical process being modelled. There are two principal ways in which the notion of virtual particles appears in modern physics. They appear as intermediate terms in Feynman diagrams; that is, as terms in a perturbative calculation. They also appear as an infinite set of states to be summed or integrated over in the calculation of a semi-non-perturbative effect. In the latter case, it is sometimes said that virtual particles contribute to a mechanism that mediates the effect, or that the effect occurs through the virtual particles.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「virtual particle」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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