The Britto–Cachazo–Feng–Witten recursion relations are a set of
on-shell recursion relations in
quantum field theory
In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines classical field theory, special relativity, and quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct physical models of subatomic particles a ...
. They are named for their creators,
Ruth Britto
Ruth Alexandra Britto-Pacumio is an American mathematical physicist whose research topics include black holes, Yang–Mills theory, and the theory of Feynman integrals; with Freddy Cachazo, Bo Feng, and Edward Witten she is one of the namesakes ...
,
Freddy Cachazo
Freddy Alexander Cachazo is a Venezuelan-born theoretical physicist who holds the Gluskin Sheff Freeman Dyson Chair in Theoretical Physics at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
He is known for the cont ...
,
Bo Feng and
Edward Witten
Edward Witten (born August 26, 1951) is an American mathematical and theoretical physicist. He is a Professor Emeritus in the School of Natural Sciences at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Witten is a researcher in string theory, ...
.
The BCFW recursion method is a way of calculating
scattering amplitudes. This technique is widely used in analytic calculations
due to the relative conciseness of the resulting expressions, when compared to the more traditional methods. The principal property of the BCFW recursion is that at every stage of the calculation it involves exclusively real (on-shell) particles, as opposed to the virtual (off-shell) particles that propagate inside conventional
Feynman diagrams
In theoretical physics, a Feynman diagram is a pictorial representation of the mathematical expressions describing the behavior and interaction of subatomic particles. The scheme is named after American physicist Richard Feynman, who introduc ...
.
See also
*
MHV amplitudes
References
Quantum field theory
Scattering theory
{{scattering-stub