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Journal of Physics Conference Series

The Dirac Operator and the Bohm-Hiley Approach

Calum J. Robson

Published Mar 1, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract Two key themes of Basil Hiley’s work were the development of David Bohm’s approach to Quantum Mechanics and the importance of Clifford Algebras in fundamental physics. In this paper I will combine these themes by beginning to examine the mathematics of Dirac operators within the Bohm-Hiley approach. I will begin by discussing the geometric interpretation of Dirac operators, and how this is made clearer by the use of Clifford algebras . Next, I will rewrite the Cl(2) Dirac wavefunction in Polar form, and show that new behaviour arises due to topological nonlocality. Finally, I discuss the relationship between the Dirac and Schroedinger equations.

DOI
10.1088/1742-6596/3189/1/012002

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Abstract Two key themes of Basil Hiley’s work were the development of David Bohm’s approach to Quantum Mechanics and the importance of Clifford Algebras in fundamental physics. In this paper I will combine these themes by beginning to examine the mathematics of Dirac operators within the Bohm-Hiley approach. I will begin by discussing the geometric interpretation of Dirac operators, and how this is made clearer by the use of Clifford algebras . Next, I will rewrite the Cl(2) Dirac wavefunction in Polar form, and show that new behaviour arises due to topological nonlocality. Finally, I discuss the relationship between the Dirac and Schroedinger equations.
In this paper we present for the first time a complete description of the Bohm model of the Dirac particle. This result demonstrates again that the common perception that it is not possible to construct a fully relativistic version of the Bohm approach is incorrect. We obtain the fully relativistic version by using an approach based on Clifford algebras outlined in two earlier papers by Hiley and by Hiley and Callaghan. The relativistic model is different from the one originally proposed by Bohm and Hiley and by Doran and Lasenby. We obtain exact expressions for the Bohm energy-momentum density, a relativistic quantum Hamilton-Jacobi for the conservation of energy which includes an expression for the quantum potential and a relativistic time development equation for the spin vectors of the particle. We then show that these reduce to the corresponding non-relativistic expressions for the Pauli particle which have already been derived by Bohm, Schiller and Tiomno and in more general form by Hiley and Callaghan. In contrast to the original presentations, there is no need to appeal to classical mechanics at any stage of the development of the formalism. All the results for the Dirac, Pauli and Schroedinger cases are shown to emerge respectively from the hierarchy of Clifford algebras C(13),C(30), C(01) taken over the reals as Hestenes has already argued. Thus quantum mechanics is emerging from one mathematical structure with no need to appeal to an external Hilbert space with wave functions.
In this paper we explore a different but unitarily equivalent picture to the standard Schrödinger and Heisenberg pictures, namely the Dirac–Bohm picture introduced by Hiley and Dennis. This is not merely another interpretation as it allows us to examine the unfolding quantum process in terms of the algebraic structure of the dynamical variables, which in turn allows us to explore the geometric implications of quantum phenomena. Furthermore this enables us to exploit the double valued nature of the orthogonal and symplectic symmetry groups and show how they profoundly affect the nature of the conjugate momentum by enabling the introduction of classes of vector potentials into Hamiltonian systems. This throws more light on the significance of gauge invariance both in classical and quantum mechanics. The connection with geometric aspects of quantum phenomena allows us to introduce Clifford algebras in a natural way so that it is possible to extend the Dirac–Bohm approach to include spin and relativity, offering new geometric insights into quantum phenomena. In particular the bi-vector aspects allow us to introduce the Gromov non-squeezing theorem in a new way, ultimately offering the possibility of relating our work to the non-commutative geometry of M-theory.
In this paper we show how Dirac, in 1947, anticipated the Bohm approach using an argument based on what is now called the Heisenberg picture. From a detailed examination of these ideas, we show that the role played by the Dirac standard ket is equivalent to the introduction and use of the idempotent in the orthogonal and symplectic Clifford algebras. This formalism is then used to show that the so-called `Bohm trajectories' are the average of an ensemble of individual stochastic Feynman paths. Since the Bohm approach can be simply reduced to classical mechanics, the algebraic formalism presented here provides a natural way to relate quantum mechanics to classical mechanics without the need for decoherence. We show that this approach suggests an underlying fractal space-time of the type discussed by Nottale.
Abstract The mathematics underpinning quantum mechanics is reviewed and discussed at length. The Sturm-Liouville theory of linear differential equations is presented. It is shown that the solutions form a complete set of orthogonal functions with real eigenvalues, and the magnitude of the eigenvalues form an ascending series beginning from a minimum. The formulation of the Dirac bra-ket notation and its meaning and applications is developed. We examine the idea of Hilbert space and the general abstract form of the theory as developed by Dirac and Jordan, introducing the Dirac notation which will be used in the rest of the book.
We examine Dirac's early algebraic approach which introduces the {\em standard} ket and show that it emerges more clearly from a unitary transformation of the operators based on the action. This establishes a new picture that is unitarily equivalent to both the Schrödinger and Heisenberg pictures. We will call this the Dirac-Bohm picture for the reasons we discuss in the paper. This picture forms the basis of the Feynman path theory and allows us to show that the so-called `Bohm trajectories' are averages of an ensemble of Feynman paths.
In this paper we show how all the quantum properties of Schroedinger and Pauli particles can be described entirely from within a Clifford algebra taken over the reals. There is no need to appeal to any `wave function'. To describe a quantum system, we define the Clifford density element [CDE] as a product of an element of a minimal left ideal and its Clifford conjugate. The properties of the system are then completely specified in terms of bilinear invariants of the first and second kind calculated using the CDE. Thus the quantum properties of a system can be completely described from within the algebra without the need to appeal to any Hilbert space representation. Furthermore we show that the essential bilinear invariants of the second kind are simply the Bohm energy and the Bohm momentum, entities that make their appearance in the Bohm interpretation. We also show how these parameters emerge from standard quantum field theory in the low energy, single particle approximation. There is no need to appeal to classical mechanics at any stage. This clearly shows that the Bohm approach is entirely within the standard quantum formalism. The method has enabled us to lay the foundations of an approach that can be extended to provide a complete relativistic version of Bohm model. In this paper we confine our attention to the details of the non-relativistic case and will present its relativistic extension in a subsequent paper.