Related papers: Signal Processing in the PVLAS Experiment
The underlying physics of neutrino oscillation in vacuum can be demonstrated by an optical analogical experiment. Two different neutrino flavors are represented by two polarization states of a laser beam, whereas the different phase…
Vacuum polarization, a key prediction of quantum theory, can cause a variety of intriguing phenomena that can be triggered by high-intensity laser pulses. The Heisenberg-Euler theory of the quantum vacuum supplements Maxwell's theory of…
Vacuum polarization, an effect predicted nearly 70 years ago, is still yet to be directly detected despite significant experimental effort. Previous attempts have made use of large liquid-helium cooled electromagnets which inadvertently…
The manner in which unpredictable chaotic dynamics manifests itself in quantum mechanics is a key question in the field of quantum chaos. Indeed, very distinct quantum features can appear due to underlying classical nonlinear dynamics. Here…
We propose a quantum interface which applies multiple passes of a pulse of light through an atomic sample with phase/polarization rotations in between the passes. Our proposal does not require nonclassical light input or measurements on the…
One of the most important insights of quantum field theory is that electromagnetic fields must fluctuate. Even in the vacuum state, the electric and magnetic fields have a nonzero variance, leading to ubiquitous effects such as spontaneous…
Understanding and interpretation of the dynamics of ultrarelativistic plasma is a challenge, which calls for the development of methods for \textit{in situ} probing the plasma dynamical characteristics. We put forward a new method,…
A relatively simple model problem where a single electron moves in two relativistically-strong obliquely intersecting plane wave-packets is studied using a number of different numerical solvers. It is shown that, in general, even the most…
Non-linear wave-driven processes in plasmas are normally described by either a monochromatic pump wave that couples to other monochromatic waves, or as a random phase wave coupling to other random phase waves. An alternative approach…
The interaction of two laser pulses in an underdense plasma has proven to be able to inject electrons in plasma waves, thus providing a stable and tunable source of electrons. Whereas previous works focused on the "beatwave" injection…
Electrodynamical processes induced in complex systems like semiconductors by strong electromagnetic fields, have traditionally/conventionally been described using semi-classical approaches. Although these approaches, allowed the…
Polarimetric imaging, a technique that captures the invisible polarization-related properties of given materials, has broad applications from fundamental physics to advanced fields such as target recognition, stress detection, biomedical…
Radiation propagating over cosmological distances can probe light weakly interacting pseudoscalar (or scalar) particles. The existence of a spin-0 field changes the dynamical symmetries of electrodynamics. It predicts spontaneous generation…
The PVLAS collaboration has results that may be interpreted in terms of a light axion-like particle, while the CAST collaboration has not found any signal of such particles. We propose a particle physics model with paraphotons and with a…
Generic mesoscopic quantum systems that interact with their environment tend to display appreciable correlations with environment that often play an important role in the physical properties of the system. However, the experimental methods…
The region very close to an electron ($r << r_0 = e^2/mc^2 \approx 2.8\times 10^{-13}$ cm) is, according to quantum electrodynamics, a seething maelstrom of virtual electron-positron pairs flashing in and out of existence. To take account…
We show that the interpretation of $\mathbf{D}=\varepsilon_{0} \mathbf{E}$ as vacuum polarization is consistent with quantum electrodynamics. A free electromagnetic field polarizes the vacuum but the magnetization and polarization currents…
The microscopic processes underlying electro-optic sampling of quantum-vacuum fluctuations are discussed, leading to the interpretation of these experiments in terms of an exchange of virtual photons. With this in mind it is shown how one…
We suggest an experiment to observe vacuum birefringence induced by intense laser fields. A high-intensity laser pulse is focused to ultra-relativistic intensity and polarizes the vacuum which then acts like a birefringent medium. The…
Two light pulses propagating with ultra-slow group velocities in a coherently prepared atomic gas exhibit dissipation-free nonlinear coupling of an unprecedented strength. This enables a single-photon pulse to coherently control or…