Connecting real-time properties of the massless Schwinger model to the massive case

Abstract

Quantum electrodynamics in $1+1$ space-time dimensions is analytically solvable for massless fermions, while no solution is known for massive fermions. Employing the classical-statistical approach, we simulate the real-time dynamics on a lattice using Wilson fermions with mass $m$ at gauge coupling $g$. It is shown that quantitative properties of the massless Schwinger model are emerging in the limit of large $g/m$. We investigate two scenarios corresponding to opposite charges which are either held fixed or moving back-to-back along the light cone, as employed in effective descriptions for jet energy loss and photon production in the context of heavy-ion collisions. Remarkably, we find that the dynamics is rather well described by the massless limit for a wide range of mass values at fixed coupling. Moreover, our study shows that previous approximate scenarios with external charges on the light cone rather accurately capture the self-consistent dynamics of the energy conserving simulation.

9 pages, 8 figures. Revised version: minor corrections, PRD Version

References in corpus (1)

• Low-cost fermions in classical field simulations

Cited by in corpus (5)

• Implementing quantum electrodynamics with ultracold atomic systems
• Real-time non-perturbative dynamics of jet production: quantum entanglement and vacuum modification
• Relativistic tunneling picture of electron-positron pair creation
• Particle production and hadronization temperature in the massive Schwinger model
• String-Breaking Dynamics in Quantum Adiabatic and Diabatic Processes