A critical reexamination of the electrostatic Aharonov-Bohm effect

DOI10.1007/S10773-010-0485-0zbMATH Open1203.81068arXiv1607.06412OpenAlexW3101530888MaRDI QIDQ613655FDOQ613655

Allan Walstad

Publication date: 21 December 2010

Published in: International Journal of Theoretical Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Abstract: This paper undertakes a critical reexamination of the electrostatic version of the Aharonov-Bohm ("AB") effect. The conclusions are as follows: 1. Aharonov and Bohm's 1959 exposition is invalid because it does not consider the wavefunction of the entire system, including the source of electrostatic potential. 2. As originally proposed, the electrostatic AB effect does not exist. Perhaps surprisingly, this conclusion holds despite the relativistic covariance of the electromagnetic four-potential combined with the well-established magnetic AB effect. 3. Although the authors attempted, in a 1961 paper, to demonstrate that consideration of the entire system would not change their result, they inadvertently assumed the desired outcome in their analysis. 4. Claimed observations of the electrostatic AB effect or an analogue thereof are shown to be mistaken.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/1607.06412

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zbMATH Keywords

Aharonov-Bohm effect

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Closed and approximate solutions to the Schrödinger, Dirac, Klein-Gordon and other equations of quantum mechanics (81Q05) Differential geometric methods, including holonomy, Berry and Hannay phases, Aharonov-Bohm effect, etc. in quantum theory (81Q70)

Cites Work

• Significance of Electromagnetic Potentials in the Quantum Theory
• Further Considerations on Electromagnetic Potentials in the Quantum Theory

Cited In (7)

• The Aharonov–Bohm effect and Tonomura et al. experiments: Rigorous results
• Quantum phases for point-like charged particles and for electrically neutral dipoles in an electromagnetic field
• Aharonov–Bohm effect revisited
• Title not available (Why is that?)
• The role of electron orbital angular momentum in the Aharonov-Bohm effect revisited
• Stability of a conditional Cauchy equation on a set of measure zero
• Further considerations regarding the Aharonov-Bohm effect and the wavefunction of the entire system

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