ORCID
- T. Heinzl: 0000-0001-8954-1986
- B. King: 0000-0003-4489-8468
Abstract
QED perturbation theory has been conjectured to break down in sufficiently strong backgrounds, obstructing the analysis of strong-field physics. We show that the breakdown occurs even in classical electrodynamics, at lower field strengths than previously considered, and that it may be cured by resummation. As a consequence, an analogous resummation is required in QED. A detailed investigation shows, for a range of observables, that unitarity removes diagrams previously believed to be responsible for the breakdown of QED perturbation theory.
DOI Link
Publication Date
2021-08-06
Publication Title
Physical Review Letters
Volume
127
Issue
6
ISSN
0031-9007
Acceptance Date
2021-06-30
Deposit Date
2021-09-20
Embargo Period
2021-09-21
Funding
The authors are supported by the EPSRC, Grant No. EP/S010319/1 (A. I., B. K.), and the Leverhulme Trust, Grant No. RPG-2019-148 (T. H., A. I.).
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Heinzl, T., Ilderton, A., & King, B. (2021) 'Classical Resummation and Breakdown of Strong-Field QED', Physical Review Letters, 127(6). Available at: 10.1103/physrevlett.127.061601
