Self-Energy of Electrons in Critical Fields

Soff, G.; Schlüter, Paul; Müller, Berndt; Greiner, Walter

doi:10.1103/physrevlett.48.1465

Cited by 69 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The related problems of vacuum charge density due to electrons filling into the K-shell and charge renormalization due to the change of wave function of electron states are discussed by Zel'dovich & Rabinovich [403] [143]. On the other hand, some theoretical work has been done studying the possibility that pair production due to bound states encountering the negative energy continuum is prevented from occurring by higher order processes of quantum field theory, such as charge renormalization, electron self-energy and nonlinearities in electrodynamics and even Dirac field itself (Müller [214] [358]). However, these studies show that various effects modify Z cr by a few percent, but have no way to prevent the binding energy from increasing to 2m e c 2 as Z increases, without simultaneously contradicting the existing precise experimental data on stable atoms (Greenberg & Greiner [139]).…”

Section: Positron Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Blackholic energy and the canonical Gamma-Ray Burst

Ruffini¹,

Bernardini²,

Bianco³

et al. 2007

AIP Conference Proceedings

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Abstract. Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) represent very likely "the" most extensive computational, theoretical and observational effort ever carried out successfully in physics and astrophysics. The extensive campaign of observation from space based X-ray and γ-ray observatory, such as the Vela, CGRO, BeppoSAX, HETE-II, INTEGRAL, Swift, R-XTE, Chandra, XMM satellites, have been matched by complementary observations in the radio wavelength (e.g. by the VLA) and in the optical band (e.g. by VLT, Keck, ROSAT). The net result is unprecedented accuracy in the received data allowing the determination of the energetics, the time variability and the spectral properties of these GRB sources. The very fortunate situation occurs that these data can be confronted with a mature theoretical development. Theoretical interpretation of the above data allows progress in three different frontiers of knowledge: a) the ultrarelativistic regimes of a macroscopic source moving at Lorentz gamma factors up to ∼ 400; b) the occurrence of vacuum polarization process verifying some of the yet untested regimes of ultrarelativistic quantum field theories; and c) the first evidence for extracting, during the process of gravitational collapse leading to the formation of a black hole, amounts of energies up to 10 55 ergs of blackholic energy -a new form of energy in physics and astrophysics. We outline how this progress leads to the confirmation of three interpretation paradigms for GRBs proposed in July 2001. Thanks mainly to the observations by Swift and the optical observations by VLT, the outcome of this analysis points to the existence of a "canonical" GRB, originating from a variety of different initial astrophysical scenarios. The communality of these GRBs appears to be that they all are emitted in the process of formation of a black hole with a negligible value of its angular momentum. The following sequence of events appears to be canonical: the vacuum polarization process in the dyadosphere with the creation of the optically thick self accelerating electron-positron plasma; the engulfment of baryonic mass during the plasma expansion; adiabatic expansion of the optically thick "fireshell" of electronpositron-baryon plasma up to the transparency; the interaction of the accelerated baryonic matter with the interstellar medium (ISM). This leads to the canonical GRB composed of a proper GRB (P-GRB), emitted at the moment of transparency, followed by an extended afterglow. The sole parameters in this scenario are the total energy of the dyadosphere E dya , the fireshell baryon loading M B defined by the dimensionless parameter B ≡ M B c 2 /E dya , and the ISM filamentary distribution around the source. In the limit B → 0 the total energy is radiated in the P-GRB with a vanishing contribution in the afterglow. In this limit, the canonical GRBs explain as well the short GRBs. In these lecture notes we systematically outline the main results of our model comparing and contrasting them with the ones in the current literature. In both cases, we have li...

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Section: Positron Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(350) and (351), is justified and we have n e + e − (T ) ∝ T 3 and therefore f r 0 ≃ 1 − (T /T 0 ) 6 (α 0 /α) 2 (r/r 0 ) 4 (r ≤R). The defining equation ofR, together with (358), then gives…”

Section: Contributions Of Grbs To the Black Hole Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

The Blackholic energy and the canonical Gamma-Ray Burst

Ruffini¹,

Bernardini²,

Bianco³

et al. 2007

AIP Conference Proceedings

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…[65,313,322,66]. On the other hand, some theoretical work has been done studying the possibility that pair production, due to bound states encountering the negative energy continuum, is prevented from occurring by higher order processes of quantum field theory, such as charge renormalization, electron self-energy and nonlinearities in electrodynamics and even Dirac field itself [222,323,324,325,326,327,328]. However, these studies show that various effects modify Z cr by a few percent, but have no way to prevent the binding energy from increasing to 2m e c 2 as Z increases, without simultaneously contradicting the existing precise experimental data on stable atoms [329].…”

Section: Positron Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electron–positron pairs in physics and astrophysics: From heavy nuclei to black holes

Ruffini¹,

Vereshchagin²,

Xue³

2010

Physics Reports

496

305

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Due to the interaction of physics and astrophysics we are witnessing in these years a splendid synthesis of theoretical, experimental and observational results originating from three fundamental physical processes. They were originally proposed by Dirac, by Breit and Wheeler and by Sauter, Heisenberg, Euler and Schwinger. For almost seventy years they have all three been followed by a continued effort of experimental verification on Earth-based experiments. The Dirac process, e + e − → 2γ, has been by far the most successful. It has obtained extremely accurate experimental verification and has led as well to an enormous number of new physics in possibly one of the most fruitful experimental avenues by introduction of storage rings in Frascati and followed by the largest accelerators worldwide: DESY, SLAC etc. The Breit-Wheeler process, 2γ → e + e − , although conceptually simple, being the inverse process of the Dirac one, has been by far one of the most difficult to be verified experimentally. Only recently, through the technology based on free electron X-ray laser and its numerous applications in Earth-based experiments, some first indications of its possible verification have been reached. The vacuum polarization process in strong electromagnetic field, pioneered by Sauter, Heisenberg, Euler and Schwinger, introduced the concept of critical electric field E c = m 2 e c 3 /(e ). It has been searched without success for more than forty years by heavy-ion collisions in many of the leading particle accelerators worldwide.The novel situation today is that these same processes can be studied on a much more grandiose scale during the gravitational collapse leading to the formation of a black hole being observed in Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs). This report is dedicated to the scientific race. The theoretical and experimental work developed in Earth-based laboratories is confronted with the theoretical interpretation of space-based observations of phenomena originating on cosmological scales. What has become clear in the last ten years is that all the three above mentioned processes, duly extended in the general relativistic framework, are necessary for the understanding of the physics of the gravitational collapse to a black hole. Vice versa, the natural arena where these processes can be observed in mutual interaction and on an unprecedented scale, is indeed the realm of relativistic astrophysics.We systematically analyze the conceptual developments which have followed the basic work of Dirac and Breit-Wheeler. We also recall how the seminal work of Born and Infeld inspired the work by Sauter, Heisenberg and Euler on effective Lagrangian leading to the estimate of the rate for the process of electron-positron production in 1 a constant electric field. In addition of reviewing the intuitive semi-classical treatment of quantum mechanical tunneling for describing the process of electron-positron production, we recall the calculations in Quantum Electro-Dynamics of the Schwinger rate and effective Lagrangian for cons...

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“…The self-energy for a super heavy element is only known for the 1s shell from the papers of Cheng and Johnson [44], and Soff et al [45]. Vacuum polarization for the 1s shell was evaluated for supercritical atoms by Neghabian [46], who found that the dive in the negative energy continuum of the 1s shell occurs at Z = 174.…”

Section: Qed Correctionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the 2010 version of mcdfgme we interpolate between known values of F 1s (Zα) for the 1s shell, which are known for 1 ≤ Z ≤ 170 [61,44,45], corrected for finite-size for the lower Z. For the other shells, when no one-electron value is known, we simply use the value of F nl j (Zα) for highest known Z, as this function is very slowly varying.…”

Section: Qed Correctionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are MCDF calculations 101% correct in the super-heavy elements range?

2011

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We explore QED and many-body effects in superheavy elements up to Z = 173 using the multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock method. We study the effect of going beyond the average-level approximation on the determination of the ground state of element 140, and compare with the recent work of Pekka Pyykkö on the periodic table for super heavy elements [1]. We confirm that QED corrections are of the order of 1% on ionization energies. We show that the atomic number at which the 1s shell dives into the negative energy continuum is 173, and is not affected by the approximation employed to evaluate the electron-electron interaction.

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Self-Energy of Electrons in Critical Fields

Cited by 69 publications

References 16 publications

The Blackholic energy and the canonical Gamma-Ray Burst

The Blackholic energy and the canonical Gamma-Ray Burst

Electron–positron pairs in physics and astrophysics: From heavy nuclei to black holes

Are MCDF calculations 101% correct in the super-heavy elements range?

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