- #1
cygnet1
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I understand how the Pauli matrices can operate on the quantum state of an electron to obtain measurements of its intrinsic spin along the x, y and z axes. I also understand that since these matrices do not commute, it is impossible to determine what all three components were before measurment.
My question is this: What are the corresponding operators that measure the spin components of bosons? For massive bosons (like the W and Z), I imagine these operators would be 3x3 matrices, since there would be three possible values of spin (-1, 0, +1). For massless bosons (like the photon and gluon?), the operators would be 2x2, since 0-spin is not possible. Do these operators have a name, and do they commute?
Thank you in advance for any replies to this question, and please correct any errors I might have made in posing my question.
My question is this: What are the corresponding operators that measure the spin components of bosons? For massive bosons (like the W and Z), I imagine these operators would be 3x3 matrices, since there would be three possible values of spin (-1, 0, +1). For massless bosons (like the photon and gluon?), the operators would be 2x2, since 0-spin is not possible. Do these operators have a name, and do they commute?
Thank you in advance for any replies to this question, and please correct any errors I might have made in posing my question.