Considerations on the ModMax electrodynamics in the presence of an electric and magnetic background

Abstract

The properties of the modified Maxwell electrodynamics (ModMax) are investigated in the presence of an external and uniform electromagnetic field. We expand the non-linear theory around an electromagnetic background up to second order in the propagating fields to obtain the permittivity and permeability tensors, the dispersion relations, the group velocity and the refractive index of the wave as functions of the uniform electric and magnetic fields. The case in which these background fields are perpendicular is analyzed. The birefringence phenomenon is discussed where the parameter of the non-linear theory has a fundamental role. We calculate the difference of the refractive indices as function of the ModMax parameter, and of the electric and magnetic fields. Finally, we compute the interaction energy for an axionic ModMax electrodynamics in the presence of an external magnetic background fields, within the framework of the gauge-invariant, but path-dependent variables formalism. Our results show that the interaction energy contains a linear term leading to the confinement of static probe charges.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure