Effective electromagnetic theory for dielectric media

Abstract

Light in a dielectric medium moves slower than in vacuum. The corresponding electromagnetic field equations are then no longer invariant under ordinary Lorentz transformations, but only under such transformations corresponding to this reduced velocity. Based on this physical symmetry, an effective theory for low-energy electromagnetic phenomena in dielectrics is constructed. It has none of the problems of the old formulations of Minkowski and Abraham. Dispersion in the optical regime and the Kerr effect arise in a natural way from higher order interaction terms. The effective field theory is quantized by standard methods and quantum corrections can be calculated in a systematic way. Thus it relates many different classical and quantum optical phenomena into a unified description.

8 pages, LaTeX; two new references added; shortened for letter and minor changes

References in corpus (6)

• Introduction to Effective Field Theory
• Goldstone and Pseudo-Goldstone Bosons in Nuclear, Particle and Condensed-Matter Physics
• Radiative Corrections to the Casimir Energy
• Effective Actions, Boundaries and Precision Calculations of Casimir Energies
• Radiative corrections to the Casimir energy and effective field theory
• Quantum Corrections to the QED Vacuum Energy

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Reconciliation of the Rosen and Laue theories of special relativity in a linear dielectric medium
• Application of axiomatic formal theory to the Abraham--Minkowski controversy
• Continuum electrodynamics and the Abraham--Minkowski momentum controversy