Time reversal of a complex scalar field ($\hat{T}\varphi (t,\mathbf{x}){\hat{T}}^{-1}={\eta }_T\varphi (-t,\mathbf{x})$)

For a charged spin-zero complex scalar field, time reversal preserves charge and can include an intrinsic phase. In its free-field mode expansion of a free field, antiunitarity conjugates the plane-wave coefficients. Relabel spatial momentum to its negative and compare the annihilation and creation terms: $\hat{T}a(\mathbf{p}){\hat{T}}^{-1}={\eta }_{T}a(-\mathbf{p})$ and $\hat{T}{b}^{†}(\mathbf{p}){\hat{T}}^{-1}={\eta }_T{b}^{†}(-\mathbf{p})$. Particle annihilation remains annihilation; unlike charge conjugation, this operation does not exchange particle and antiparticle operators.

In the scalar transformation $\hat{T}a(p){\hat{T}}^{-1}={\eta }_{T}a(p_P)$, preservation of canonical commutators or the involution condition gives $|{\eta }_T|=1$. Antiunitarity conjugates the phase on a second application, so the condition does not restrict it to plus or minus one. Redefine $a^{\prime }=e^{i\chi }a$; then $\hat{T}{a}^{\prime }{\hat{T}}^{-1}=e^{-2i\chi }{\eta }_T{a}^{\prime }(p_P)$. Choosing $\chi =\arg ({\eta }_T)/2$ makes the intrinsic phase one. Oppositely rephasing the antiparticle annihilator implements the same change as a phase convention for the whole scalar field.