English

No-go theorem for the classical Maxwell-Lorentz electrodynamics in odd-dimensional worlds

High Energy Physics - Theory 2011-10-26 v2 Classical Physics

Abstract

If the conventional Maxwell--Lorentz formulation of classical electrodynamics is adopted in a flat spacetime of arbitrary odd dimension, then the retarded vector potential AμA^\mu generated by a point charge turns out to be pure gauge, Aμ=μχA^\mu=\partial^\mu\chi. By Gauss' law, the charge shows up as zero. The classical electromagnetic coupling is thus missing from odd-dimensional worlds. If the action is augmented by the addition of the Chern--Simons term, then the classical interaction picture in the three-dimensional world becomes nontrivial.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-th/0208170,
  title  = {No-go theorem for the classical Maxwell-Lorentz electrodynamics in odd-dimensional worlds},
  author = {Andrew E. Chubykalo and Augusto Espinoza and B. P. Kosyakov},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-th/0208170},
  year   = {2011}
}

Comments

V1 LaTeX, 4 pages, V2. The title is changed, two new authors appear for the reason explained at the end of the text, the main result remains unchanged, new comments are added, references are renewed

R2 v1 2026-07-22T15:12:39.371Z