Gravity and handedness of photons Articles uri icon

publication date

  • October 2017

start page

  • 1

end page

  • 6

issue

  • 12

volume

  • 26

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 0218-2718

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 1793-6594

abstract

  • Vacuum fluctuations of quantum fields are altered in the presence of a strong gravitational background, with important physical consequences. We argue that a nontrivial spacetime geometry can act as an optically active medium for quantum electromagnetic radiation, in such a way that the state of polarization of radiation changes in time, even in the absence of electromagnetic sources. This is a quantum effect, and is a consequence of an anomaly related to the classical invariance under electric-magnetic duality rotations in Maxwell theory.

subjects

  • Mathematics
  • Physics

keywords

  • quantum fields in curved spacetime; symmetry and conservation laws; electromagnetic wave propagation; anomalies