English

A Rotating Quantum Vacuum

High Energy Physics - Theory 2008-11-26 v3

Abstract

We investigate how a uniformly rotating frame is defined as the rest frame of an observer rotating with constant angular velocity Ω\Omega around the zz axis of an inertial frame. Assuming that this frame is a Lorentz one, we second quantize a free massless scalar field in this rotating frame and obtain that creation-anihilation operators of the field are not the same as those of an inertial frame. This leads to a new vacuum state --- a rotating vacuum --- which is a superposition of positive and negative frequency Minkowski particles. After this, introducing an apparatus device coupled linearly with the field we obtain that there is a strong correlation between number of rotating particles (in a given state) obtained via canonical quantization and via response function of the rotating detector. Finally, we analyse polarization effects in circular accelerators in the proper frame of the electron making a connection with the inertial frame point of view.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-th/9612006,
  title  = {A Rotating Quantum Vacuum},
  author = {V. A. De Lorenci and N. F. Svaiter},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-th/9612006},
  year   = {2008}
}

Comments

31 pages, LaTex (Revised version!)