Related papers: The Spontaneous Breakdown of the Vacuum
We explore the question of how to probe the vacuum structure of space time by a massive scalar field through interaction with background gravitons. Using the $\Gamma$-regularization for the in-/out-state formalism, we find the effective…
We study nonlinear vacuum electrodynamics in a first-order formulation proposed by Pleba\'nski. By applying a Dirac constraint analysis, we derive an effective Hamiltonian, together with the equations of motion. We show that there exists a…
It is a long-standing non-trivial prediction of quantum electrodynamics that its vacuum is unstable in the background of a static, spatially uniform electric field and, in principle, sparks with spontaneous emission of electron-positron…
We describe how a stable effective theory in which particles of the same fermion number attract may spontaneously break Lorentz invariance by giving non-zero fermion number density to the vacuum (and therefore dynamically generating a…
The spontaneous production of electron-positron pairs from the vacuum--in a field configuration composed of a high-frequency electric mode of weak intensity and a strong constant electric field--is investigated. Asymptotic expressions for…
It is commonly agreed that the electromagnetic vacuum is not empty but filled with virtual photons. This leads to effects like Lamb shift and spontaneous emission. Here we argue that if the vacuum has virtual photons it might mean that it…
Electric fields can spontaneously decay via the Schwinger effect, the nucleation of a charged particle-anti particle pair separated by a critical distance $d$. What happens if the available distance is smaller than $d$? Previous work on…
We extend our study of deriving the local gauge invariance with spontaneous symmetry breaking in the context of an effective field theory by considering self-interactions of the scalar field and inclusion of the electromagnetic interaction.…
The vacuum dynamics of SU(2) lattice gauge theory is studied by means of a gauge-invariant effective action defined using the lattice Schr\"odinger functional. Numerical simulations are performed both at zero and finite temperature. The…
In the framework of QED with a strong background, we study particle creation (the Schwinger effect) by a time-dependent inverse square electric field. To this end corresponding exact in- and out-solutions of the Dirac and Klein-Gordon…
Dielectric breakdown of physical vacuum (Schwinger effect) is the textbook demonstration of compatibility of Relativity and Quantum theory. Although observing this effect is still practically unachievable, its analogue generalizations have…
We propose a novel mechanism of spontaneous supersymmetry breaking which relies upon an ubiquitous feature of Quantum Field Theory, vacuum condensates. Such condensates play a crucial r\^{o}le in many phenomena. Examples include Unruh…
At strong-coupling and weak-field limit, the scalar Schwinger effect is studied by the field-theoretical method of worldline instantons for dynamic fields of single-pulse and sinusoidal types. By examining the Wilson loop along the closed…
A new exactly solvable case in strong-field quantum electrodynamics with a time-dependent external electric field is presented. The corresponding field is given by an analytic function, which is asymmetric (in contrast to Sauter-like…
When the vacuum state of a scalar or electromagnetic field is modified by the presence of a reflecting boundary, an interacting test particle undergoes velocity fluctuations. Such effect is regarded as a sort of quantum analog of the…
We formulate a stochastic generalisation of the Schwinger effect, extending pair production to statistically fluctuating gauge-field backgrounds. Our approach captures realistic field configurations that are transient, inhomogeneous, and…
We study the fermionic vacuum energy of vacua with and without being applied an external magnetic field. The energetic difference of two vacua leads to the vacuum decaying and the vacuum-energy releasing. In the context of quantum field…
On the example of a real scalar field, an approach to quantization of non-linear fields and construction of the perturbation theory with account of spontaneous symmetry breaking is proposed. The method is based on using as the main…
This review consolidates experimental, theoretical, and simulation work examining the behavior of high-field devices and the fundamental process of vacuum arc initiation, commonly referred to as breakdown. Detailed experimental observations…
In this work spontaneous (non-dynamical) breaking (effective hiding) of the unitary quantum mechanical dynamical symmetry (superposition) is considered. It represents an especial but very interesting case of the general formalism of the…