One non-relativistic particle coupled to a photon field

We investigate the ground state energy of an electron coupled to a photon field. First, we regard the self-energy of a free electron, which we describe by the Pauli-Fierz Hamiltonian. We show that, in the case of small values of the coupling constant $\alpha$, the leading order term is represented by $2\pi^{-1} \alpha (\Lambda - \ln[1 + \Lambda])$. Next we put the electron in the field of an arbitrary external potential $V$, such that the corresponding Schr\"odinger operator $p^2 + V$ has at least one eigenvalue, and show that by coupling to the radiation field the binding energy increases, at least for small enough values of the coupling constant $\alpha$. Moreover, we provide concrete numbers for $\alpha$, the ultraviolet cut-off $\Lambda$, and the radiative correction for which our procedure works.Comment: final version, to appear in Ann. Henri Poincar

Non-Perturbative Mass and Charge Renormalization in Relativistic No-Photon Quantum Electrodynamics

Starting from a formal Hamiltonian as found in the physics literature -- omitting photons -- we define a renormalized Hamiltonian through charge and mass renormalization. We show that the restriction to the one-electron subspace is well-defined. Our construction is non-perturbative and does not use a cut-off. The Hamiltonian is relevant for the description of the Lamb shift in muonic atoms.Comment: Reformulation of main theorem, minor changes in the proo

Comparing the full time-dependent Bogoliubov--de-Gennes equations to their linear approximation: A numerical investigation

In this paper we report on the results of a numerical study of the nonlinear time-dependent Bardeen--Cooper--Schrieffer (BCS) equations, often also denoted as Bogoliubov--de--Gennes (BdG) equations, for a one-dimensional system of fermions with contact interaction. We show that, even above the critical temperature, the full equations and their linear approximation give rise to completely different evolutions. In contrast to its linearization, the full nonlinear equation does not show any diffusive behavior in the order parameter. This means that the order parameter does not follow a Ginzburg--Landau-type of equation, in accordance with a recent theoretical results. We include a full description on the numerical implementation of the partial differential BCS\ BdG equations.Comment: 10 pages, to appear in EP

Existence of Atoms and Molecules in the Mean-Field Approximation of No-Photon Quantum Electrodynamics

The Bogoliubov-Dirac-Fock (BDF) model is the mean-field approximation of no-photon Quantum Electrodynamics. The present paper is devoted to the study of the minimization of the BDF energy functional under a charge constraint. An associated minimizer, if it exists, will usually represent the ground state of a system of $N$ electrons interacting with the Dirac sea, in an external electrostatic field generated by one or several fixed nuclei. We prove that such a minimizer exists when a binding (HVZ-type) condition holds. We also derive, study and interpret the equation satisfied by such a minimizer. Finally, we provide two regimes in which the binding condition is fulfilled, obtaining the existence of a minimizer in these cases. The first is the weak coupling regime for which the coupling constant $\alpha$ is small whereas $\alpha Z$ and the particle number $N$ are fixed. The second is the non-relativistic regime in which the speed of light tends to infinity (or equivalently $\alpha$ tends to zero) and $Z$, $N$ are fixed. We also prove that the electronic solution converges in the non-relativistic limit towards a Hartree-Fock ground state.Comment: Final version, to appear in Arch. Rat. Mech. Ana