Vacuum Polarization Effects from Fermion Zero-Point Energy
Abstract
Description
The influence of an external electromagnetic field on the vacuum structure of a quantized Dirac field is investigated by considering the quantum corrections to classical Maxwell's lagrangian density induced by fluctuations of the non-perturbative vacuum. Effective Lagrangian densities for Maxwell's theory in (3+1) and (2+1) dimensions are derived from the vacuum zero-point energy of the fermion field in the context of a consistent Pauli-Villars-Rayski subtraction scheme, recovering Euler-Kockel-Heisenberg and Maxwell-Chern-Simons effective theories. Effective scalar quantum electrodymanics as well as low temperature effects in both spinor and scalar theories are also discussed.
LaTex file, 16 pages, no figures, new section and references added
LaTex file, 16 pages, no figures, new section and references added