Pilot-wave theories provide possible solutions to the measurement problem. In
such theories, quantum systems are not only described by the state vector, but
also by some additional variables. These additional variables, also called
beables, can be particle positions, field configurations, strings, etc. In this
paper we focus our attention on pilot-wave theories in which the additional
variables are field configurations. The first such theory was proposed by Bohm
for the free electromagnetic field. Since Bohm, similar pilot-wave theories
have been proposed for other quantum fields. The purpose of this paper is to
present an overview and further development of these proposals. We discuss
various bosonic quantum field theories such as the Schroedinger field, the free
electromagnetic field, scalar quantum electrodynamics and the Abelian Higgs
model. In particular, we compare the pilot-wave theories proposed by Bohm and
by Valentini for the electromagnetic field, finding that they are equivalent.
We further discuss the proposals for fermionic fields by Holland and Valentini.
In the case of Holland's model we indicate that further work is required in
order to show that the model is capable of reproducing the standard quantum
predictions. We also consider a similar model, which does not seem to reproduce
the standard quantum predictions. In the case of Valentini's model we point out
a problem that seems hard to overcome.Comment: 65 pages, no figures, LaTex; v2 minor changes, some extensions; v3
minor improvements; v4 some typos correcte