Siegel superparticle, higher-order fermionic constraints, and path integrals

We study a Siegel superparticle moving in R-4\4 flat superspace. Canonical quantization is accomplished yielding the massless Wess-Zumino model as an effective field theory. The path integral representation for the correspond ing superpropagator is constructed and proven to involve the Siegel action in a gauge-fixed form. It is shown that higher-order fermionic constraints intrinsic in the theory, though being a consequence of others in d = 4, mak e a crucial contribution to the path integral. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevi er Science B.V.