Elementary Aharonov-Bohm system in three space dimensions: Quantum attraction with no classical force
- C. N. Yang Institute for Theoretical Physics and Department of Physics and Astronomy, State University of New York, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3840, USA (United States)
As a consequence of the Aharonov-Bohm effect, there is a quantum-induced attraction between a charged particle and a rigid, impenetrable hoop made from an arbitrarily thin tube containing a superconductor quantum of magnetic flux. This is remarkable because in classical physics there is no force between the two objects, and quantum-mechanical effects (associated with uncertainty-principle energy) generally are repulsive rather than attractive. For an incident spinless charged particle in a P wave (in a configuration with total angular momentum zero) we verify a resonance just above threshold using the Kohn variational principle in its S-matrix form. Even if optimistic choices of parameters describing a model system with these properties were feasible, the temperature required to observe the resonance would be far lower than has yet been attained in the laboratory.
- OSTI ID:
- 20639864
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review. A, Vol. 68, Issue 1; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.68.012109; (c) 2003 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1050-2947
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Quantum motion of a point particle in the presence of the Aharonov–Bohm potential in curved space
The Aharonov–Bohm effect in scattering theory