ID: physics/0304067

Quantum Statistics: Is there an effective fermion repulsion or boson attraction?

April 18, 2003

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W. J. Department of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts Mullin, G. Department of Physics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts Blaylock
Physics
Physics Education

Physicists often claim that there is an effective repulsion between fermions, implied by the Pauli principle, and a corresponding effective attraction between bosons. We examine the origins of such exchange force ideas, the validity for them, and the areas where they are highly misleading. We propose that future explanations of quantum statistics should avoid the idea of a effective force completely and replace it with more appropriate physical insights, some of which are suggested here.

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