Relations between Condensed Matter Physics and Relativistic Quantum Field Theory

Dear colleagues,

It has been known for a long time that certain features of high energy physics may be simulated in laboratory conditions using various condensed matter systems. In particular, the fermionic quasiparticles in superfluid Helium-3A are described by the (anisotropic) massless Dirac equation. In recent years, new materials have been discovered, where such an analogy is even more pronounced: graphene, Weyl semimetals, and Dirac semimetals. The quasiparticles in these materials also behave similarly to the elementary particles of high energy physics. Unlike the quasiparticles in Helium-3, they carry an ordinary electric charge, which facilitates simulation of electromagnetic phenomena specific to the physics of elementary particles. The mentioned analogy opens up the possibility to apply deep understanding of relativistic quantum field theories to the solution of various problems of condensed matter physics. In particular, the lattice field theory techniques may be applied to the physics of solids. In turn, various approaches of condensed matter physics theory may be applied to the high energy physics.

The corresponding mutual relationship of modern condensed matter physics and relativistic quantum field theory is the subject of the present Special Issue. Such features involve but are not reduced to the applications of relativistic quantum field theories (including lattice field theory) to physics of Dirac and Weyl semimetals, graphene, Quantum Hall Effects, fermionic superfluids, quark–gluon plasma, and anomalous transport effects.

Prof. Dr. Mikhail Zubkov
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Symmetry is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.