Maximal velocity of photons in non-relativistic QED

2011/10/18 by Jean‐François Bony, Bony, Jean-Francois, Jérémy Faupin +3 · 2 citations
Mathematics · Physics and Astronomy · #35P25 #47A40 #81Q10 #81U99 #81V10 #FOS: Mathematics #FOS: Physical sciences #Mathematical Physics (math-ph) #Quantum Mechanics and Applications #Quantum optics and atomic interactions #Spectral Theory (math.SP) #Spectral Theory in Mathematical Physics

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1110.3965

openalex publication_date 2011/10/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

We consider the problem of propagation of photons in the quantum theory of non-relativistic matter coupled to electromagnetic radiation, which is, presently, the only consistent quantum theory of matter and radiation. Assuming that the matter system is in a localized state (i.e for energies below the ionization threshold), we show that the probability to find photons at time t at the distance greater than ct, where c is the speed of light, vanishes as t goes to infinity as an inverse power of t.

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