What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective
In this paper we would like to highlight the problems of conceiving the “Hydrogen Bond” (HB) as a real short-range, directional, electrostatic, attractive interaction and to reframe its nature through the non-approximated view of condensed matter offered by a Quantum Electro-Dynamic (QED) perspectiv...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-03-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/25/7/3846 |
| _version_ | 1797212526976434176 |
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| author | Paolo Renati Pierre Madl |
| author_facet | Paolo Renati Pierre Madl |
| author_sort | Paolo Renati |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In this paper we would like to highlight the problems of conceiving the “Hydrogen Bond” (HB) as a real short-range, directional, electrostatic, attractive interaction and to reframe its nature through the non-approximated view of condensed matter offered by a Quantum Electro-Dynamic (QED) perspective. We focus our attention on water, as the paramount case to show the effectiveness of this 40-year-old theoretical background, which represents water as a two-fluid system (where one of the two phases is coherent). The HB turns out to be the result of the electromagnetic field gradient in the coherent phase of water, whose vacuum level is lower than in the non-coherent (gas-like) fraction. In this way, the HB can be properly considered, i.e., no longer as a “dipolar force” between molecules, but as the phenomenological effect of their collective thermodynamic tendency to occupy a lower ground state, compatible with temperature and pressure. This perspective allows to explain many “anomalous” behaviours of water and to understand why the calculated energy associated with the HB should change when considering two molecules (water-dimer), or the liquid state, or the different types of ice. The appearance of a condensed, liquid, phase at room temperature is indeed the consequence of the boson condensation as described in the context of spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB). For a more realistic and authentic description of water, condensed matter and living systems, the transition from a still semi-classical Quantum Mechanical (QM) view in the first quantization to a Quantum Field Theory (QFT) view embedded in the second quantization is advocated. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:43:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d0e6800f70064fe3a08f74e92031857a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:43:48Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-d0e6800f70064fe3a08f74e92031857a2024-04-12T13:19:55ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Molecular Sciences1661-65961422-00672024-03-01257384610.3390/ijms25073846What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED PerspectivePaolo Renati0Pierre Madl1World Water Community, NL-3029 Rotterdam, The NetherlandsPrototyping Unit, Edge-Institute, ER-System Mechatronics, A-5440 Golling, AustriaIn this paper we would like to highlight the problems of conceiving the “Hydrogen Bond” (HB) as a real short-range, directional, electrostatic, attractive interaction and to reframe its nature through the non-approximated view of condensed matter offered by a Quantum Electro-Dynamic (QED) perspective. We focus our attention on water, as the paramount case to show the effectiveness of this 40-year-old theoretical background, which represents water as a two-fluid system (where one of the two phases is coherent). The HB turns out to be the result of the electromagnetic field gradient in the coherent phase of water, whose vacuum level is lower than in the non-coherent (gas-like) fraction. In this way, the HB can be properly considered, i.e., no longer as a “dipolar force” between molecules, but as the phenomenological effect of their collective thermodynamic tendency to occupy a lower ground state, compatible with temperature and pressure. This perspective allows to explain many “anomalous” behaviours of water and to understand why the calculated energy associated with the HB should change when considering two molecules (water-dimer), or the liquid state, or the different types of ice. The appearance of a condensed, liquid, phase at room temperature is indeed the consequence of the boson condensation as described in the context of spontaneous symmetry breaking (SSB). For a more realistic and authentic description of water, condensed matter and living systems, the transition from a still semi-classical Quantum Mechanical (QM) view in the first quantization to a Quantum Field Theory (QFT) view embedded in the second quantization is advocated.https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/25/7/3846quantum field theoryphasecoherencewatersymmetry-breakingdynamical order |
| spellingShingle | Paolo Renati Pierre Madl What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective International Journal of Molecular Sciences quantum field theory phase coherence water symmetry-breaking dynamical order |
| title | What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective |
| title_full | What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective |
| title_fullStr | What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective |
| title_full_unstemmed | What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective |
| title_short | What Is the “Hydrogen Bond”? A QFT-QED Perspective |
| title_sort | what is the hydrogen bond a qft qed perspective |
| topic | quantum field theory phase coherence water symmetry-breaking dynamical order |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/25/7/3846 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT paolorenati whatisthehydrogenbondaqftqedperspective AT pierremadl whatisthehydrogenbondaqftqedperspective |