Probing Vacuum Polarization Effects with High-Intensity Lasers

• Published in: Particles Vol. 3; no. 1; pp. 39 - 61
• Main Author: Karbstein, Felix
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 01-03-2020
• Subjects: all-optical signatures; external-field qed; quantum vacuum nonlinearity
• ISSN: 2571-712X; 2571-712X
• DOI: 10.3390/particles3010005

These notes provide a pedagogical introduction to the theoretical study of vacuum polarization effects in strong electromagnetic fields as provided by state-of-the-art high-intensity lasers. Quantum vacuum fluctuations give rise to effective couplings between electromagnetic fields, thereby supplementing Maxwell’s linear theory of classical electrodynamics with nonlinearities. Resorting to a simplified laser pulse model, allowing for explicit analytical insights, we demonstrate how to efficiently analyze all-optical signatures of these effective interactions in high-intensity laser experiments. Moreover, we highlight several key features relevant for the accurate planning and quantitative theoretical analysis of quantum vacuum nonlinearities in the collision of high-intensity laser pulses.