Classical physics and quantum loops
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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Barry R Holstein1, John F Donoghue
1Department of Physics-LGRT, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA.
Abstract:
The standard picture of the loop expansion associates a factor of variant Planck's over 2pi with each loop, suggesting that the tree diagrams are to be associated with classical physics, while loop effects are quantum mechanical in nature. We discuss counterexamples wherein classical effects arise from loop diagrams and display the relationship between the classical terms and the long range effects of massless particles.
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