We apply worldline methods to the study of vacuum polarisation effects in
plane wave backgrounds, in both scalar and spinor QED. We calculate
helicity-flip probabilities to one loop order and treated exactly in the
background field, and provide a toolkit of methods for use in investigations of
higher-order processes. We also discuss the connections between the worldline,
S-matrix, and lightfront approaches to vacuum polarisation effects.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figur