Are electrons virtual particles?

For every different type of elementary particle (quark, photon, electron, etc.), there are also virtual quarks, virtual photons, and so on. A useful analogy to the realist narrative of virtual particles is to imagine going to a big family reunion, full of cousins, parents, grandparents, and others.

What is the difference between real and virtual particles?

“Real particles” are better understood to be excitations of the underlying quantum fields. Virtual particles are also excitations of the underlying fields, but are “temporary” in the sense that they appear in calculations of interactions, but never as asymptotic states or indices to the scattering matrix.

What is the mass of a virtual particle?

Virtual particles cannot be observed. They can be stated as a mathematical hypothesis, but their mass has to be within the limits of the integration. In e+e- annihilation , the closer to the mass of the Z the incoming energy is, the closer the virtual Z is to the on shell mass of 90+ GeV of the Z.

Are virtual particles (vp) real?

Quantum field theory never asserts that virtual particles are real. To put it simply, virtual particles are just factors that look mathematically like particles but don’t behave quite like particles. But, the theory does not make the logical jump to state that VPs actually exist.

Can we detect virtual particles in empty space?

Although we cannot detect [+] the virtual particles present in empty space, their presence is necessary to predict, quantitatively, the effects that quantum fields have on observable quantities in our Universe.

How do virtual particles exist outside integration limits?

Virtual particles live only within integration limits, they have the quantum numbers of the named particle but their mass is off shell, within the limits of the implied integration. When they pop back out of existence do their mass disappear instantly? They do not exist outside integration limits, which supply the energy for the interaction.