Domain wall interactions due to vacuum Dirac field fluctuations in 2+1 dimensions

We evaluate quantum effects due to a $2$-component Dirac field in $2+1$ space-time dimensions, coupled to domain-wall like defects with a smooth shape. We show that those effects induce non trivial contributions to the (shape-dependent) energy of the domain walls. For a single defect, we study the divergences in the corresponding self-energy, and also consider the role of the massless zero mode, corresponding to the Callan-Harvey mechanism, by coupling the Dirac field to an external gauge field. For two defects, we show that the Dirac field induces a non trivial, Casimir-like effect between them, and provide an exact expression for that interaction in the case of two straight-line parallel defects. As is the case for the Casimir interaction energy, the result is finite and unambiguous.Comment: 17 pages, 1 figur

A Lindenstrauss theorem for some classes of multilinear mappings

Under some natural hypotheses, we show that if a multilinear mapping belongs to some Banach multlinear ideal, then it can be approximated by multilinear mappings belonging to the same ideal whose Arens extensions simultaneously attain their norms. We also consider the class of symmetric multilinear mappings.Comment: 11 page

Quantum open systems approach to the dynamical Casimir effect

We analyze the introduction of dissipative effects in the study of the dynamical Casimir effect. We consider a toy model for an electromagnetic cavity that contains a semiconducting thin shell, which is irradiated with short laser pulses in order to produce periodic oscillations of its conductivity. The coupling between the quantum field in the cavity and the microscopic degrees of freedom of the shell induces dissipation and noise in the dynamics of the field. We argue that the photon creation process should be described in terms of a damped oscillator with nonlocal dissipation and colored noise.Comment: 12 pages, to appear in the Proceedings of the "Wokshop on Quantum Nonstationary Systems", Brasilia 2009 (Special Issue, Physica Scripta

Radiation from a moving planar dipole layer: patch potentials vs dynamical Casimir effect

We study the classical electromagnetic radiation due to the presence of a dipole layer on a plane that performs a bounded motion along its normal direction, to the first non-trivial order in the amplitude of that motion. We show that the total emitted power may be written in terms of the dipole layer autocorrelation function. We then apply the general expression for the emitted power to cases where the dipole layer models the presence of patch potentials, comparing the magnitude of the emitted radiation with that coming from the quantum vacuum in the presence of a moving perfect conductor (dynamical Casimir effect).Comment: 5 pages, no figure

Renormalization Group Approach to the Dynamical Casimir Effect

In this paper we study the one dimensional dynamical Casimir effect. We consider a one dimensional cavity formed by two mirrors, one of which performs an oscillatory motion with a frequency resonant with the cavity. The naive solution, perturbative in powers of the amplitude, contains secular terms. Therefore it is valid only in the short time limit. Using a renormalization group technique to resum these terms, we obtain an improved analytical solution which is valid for longer times. We discuss the generation of peaks in the density energy profile and show that the total energy inside the cavity increases exponentially.Comment: 16 pages, RevTeX, 3 Postscript figures (uses epsf

Quantum corrections to the geodesic equation

In this talk we will argue that, when gravitons are taken into account, the solution to the semiclassical Einstein equations (SEE) is not physical. The reason is simple: any classical device used to measure the spacetime geometry will also feel the graviton fluctuations. As the coupling between the classical device and the metric is non linear, the device will not measure the `background geometry' (i.e. the geometry that solves the SEE). As a particular example we will show that a classical particle does not follow a geodesic of the background metric. Instead its motion is determined by a quantum corrected geodesic equation that takes into account its coupling to the gravitons. This analysis will also lead us to find a solution to the so-called gauge fixing problem: the quantum corrected geodesic equation is explicitly independent of any gauge fixing parameter.Comment: Revtex file, 6 pages, no figures. Talk presented at the meeting "Trends in Theoretical Physics II", Buenos Aires, Argentina, December 199

Area terms in entanglement entropy

We discuss area terms in entanglement entropy and show that a recent formula by Rosenhaus and Smolkin is equivalent to the term involving a correlator of traces of the stress tensor in Adler-Zee formula for the renormalization of the Newton constant. We elaborate on how to fix the ambiguities in these formulas: Improving terms for the stress tensor of free fields, boundary terms in the modular Hamiltonian, and contact terms in the Euclidean correlation functions. We make computations for free fields and show how to apply these calculations to understand some results for interacting theories which have been studied in the literature. We also discuss an application to the F-theorem.Comment: 26 pages, no figures, references adde

Ultraviolet cutoffs for quantum fields in cosmological spacetimes

We analyze critically the renormalization of quantum fields in cosmological spacetimes, using non covariant ultraviolet cutoffs. We compute explicitly the counterterms necessary to renormalize the semiclassical Einstein equations, using comoving and physical ultraviolet cutoffs. In the first case, the divergences renormalize bare conserved fluids, while in the second case it is necessary to break the covariance of the bare theory. We point out that, in general, the renormalized equations differ from those obtained with covariant methods, even after absorbing the infinities and choosing the renormalized parameters to force the consistency of the renormalized theory. We repeat the analysis for the evolution equation for the mean value of an interacting scalar fieldComment: 19 pages. Minor changes. References adde