Two-Photon Decays Reexamined: Cascade Contributions and Gauge Invariance

Author

Ulrich D. Jentschura, Missouri University of Science and TechnologyFollow

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to calculate the two-photon decay rate corresponding to the two-photon transitions nS → 1S and nD → 1S in hydrogen-like ions with a low nuclear charge number Z (for principal quantum numbers n = 2, ..., 8). Numerical results are obtained within a nonrelativistic framework, and the results are found to scale approximately as (Zα) ⁶/n³, where α is the fine-structure constant. We also attempt to clarify a number of subtle issues regarding the treatment of the coherent, quasi-simultaneous emission of the two photons as opposed to one-photon cascades. In particular, the gauge invariance of the decay rate is shown explicitly.

Recommended Citation

U. D. Jentschura, "Two-Photon Decays Reexamined: Cascade Contributions and Gauge Invariance," Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and Theoretical, vol. 41, no. 15, IOP Publishing, Apr 2008.

The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1088/1751-8113/41/15/155307

Department(s)

Physics

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

1751-8113

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2008 IOP Publishing, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Apr 2008