I am puzzled by the answers to the question:
There, Ron Maimon's answer gives a clear-cut definition, which I suppose applies to any quantum field theory with Hamiltonian H, that the theory has a mass gap if there is a positive constant A such that ⟨ψ|H|ψ⟩≥⟨0|H|0⟩+A for all nonzero (normalized) ψ.
But then, Arnold Neumaier says
QED has no mass gap, as observable photons are massless states.
I would quite appreciate a brief explanation of this statement. The definition is concerned with the minimum possible energy for non-zero states. So I don't see why the photons having zero mass would imply the absence of a mass gap.
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