GENERALLY COVARIANT FRESNEL EQUATION AND THE EMERGENCE OF THE LIGHT CONE STRUCTURE IN LINEAR PRE-METRIC ELECTRODYNAMICS

DOI10.1142/S0218271802002190MaRDI QIDQ4674701zbMATH OpenFDO

Authors Guillermo F. Rubilar, Yuri N. Obukhov, Friedrich W. Hehl

Publication date 18 May 2005

Published in International Journal of Modern Physics D (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/0109012

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Electromagnetic fields in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C50) Geometrodynamics and the holographic principle (83E05)

Abstract: We study the {em propagation of electromagnetic waves} in a spacetime devoid of a metric but equipped with a {em linear} electromagnetic spacetime relation $HsimchicdotF$. Here $H$ is the electromagnetic excitation $(calD,calH)$ and $F$ the field strength $(E,B)$, whereas $chi$ (36 independent components) characterizes the electromagnetic permittivity/permeability of spacetime. We derive analytically the corresponding Fresnel equation and show that it is always quartic in the wave covectors. We study the `Fresnel tensor density' ${calG}^{ijkl}$ as (cubic) function of $chi$ and identify the leading part of $chi$ (20 components) as indispensable for light propagation. Upon requiring electric/magnetic reciprocity of the spacetime relation, the leading part of $chi$ induces the {em light cone} structure of spacetime (9 components), i.e., the spacetime metric up to a function. The possible existence of an Abelian {em axion} field (1 component of $chi$) and/or of a {em skewon} field (15 components) and their effect on light propagation is discussed in some detail. The newly introduced skewon field is expected to be T-odd and related to dissipation.

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• Axion and dilaton + metric emerge jointly from an electromagnetic model universe with local and linear response behavior
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• On light propagation in premetric electrodynamics: the covariant dispersion relation
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1891617 (Why is no real title available?)
• Is the Lorentz signature of the metric of spacetime electromagnetic in origin?
• Spacetime structure and asymmetric metric from the premetric formulation of electromagnetism
• Non-dissipative electromagnetic media with two Lorentz null cones
• To consider the electromagnetic field as fundamental, and the metric only as a subsidiary field
• Non-minimal Einstein-Maxwell theory: the Fresnel equation and the Petrov classification of a trace-free susceptibility tensor
• A generalized photon propagator
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