Canonical quantization of the electromagnetic field interacting with a moving dielectric medium

S. A. R. Horsley
Phys. Rev. A 86, 023830 – Published 20 August 2012

Abstract

The electromagnetic field is canonically quantized in the presence of a linear, dispersive, and dissipative medium that is in uniform motion. Specifically we calculate the change in the normal modes of the coupled matter-field system and find a Hamiltonian that contains negative-energy normal modes. We interpret these modes as the origin of phenomena such as quantum friction and find that a detector initially in its ground state and coupled to the electromagnetic field in the vicinity of, or within, a uniformly moving medium has a nonzero probability of excitation at T=0 K.

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  • Received 30 May 2012

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.86.023830

©2012 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

S. A. R. Horsley*

  • School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews KY16 9SS, United Kingdom

  • *sarh@st-andrews.ac.uk

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Vol. 86, Iss. 2 — August 2012

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