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A critical review of the obscure nature of the contribution of spin energy to the energy of the electromagnetic field is presented. It is proposed that the total energy of photon h\nu comprises of kinetic and spin parts each equal to h\nu/2. Classical magnetic field is reinterpreted as angular momentum flux of photon fluid. The black-body radiation law is revisited in the light of new significance of the zero-point energy proposed here., Comment: Submitted for publication

In order to clarify why the zero-point energy associated with the vacuum fluctuations cannot be a candidate for the dark energy in the universe, a comparison with the Casimir effect is analyzed in some detail. A principle of epistemology is stressed that it is meaningless to talk about an absolute (isolated) thing. A relative thing can only be observed when it is changing with respect to other things. Then a new conjecture of antigravity --the repulsive force between matter and antimatter derived from the modified Einstein field equation in general relativity-- is proposed. this is due to the particle-antiparticle symmetry based on a new understanding about the essence of special relativity. Its possible consequences in the theory of cosmology are discussed briefly, including a new explanation for the accelerating universe and gamma-ray-bursts., Comment: 11 pages,1 figure

In this paper a framework is introduced to remove the huge discrepancy between the empirical value of the cosmological constant and the contribution to the cosmological constant predicted from the vacuum energy of quantum fields. An extra dimensional space with metric reversal symmetry and $R^2$ gravity is considered to this end. The resulting 4-dimensional energy-momentum tensor (obtained after integration over extra dimensions) consists of terms that contain off-diagonally coupled pair of Kaluza-Klein modes. This, in turn, generically results in vanishing of the vacuum expectation value of the energy-momentum tensor for quantum fields, and offers a way to solve the problem of huge contribution of quantum fields to the vacuum energy density., Comment: Presentation and content are improved, references are added. I would like to thank the anonymous referee for his valuable comments and suggestions to improve the paper

The present paper seeks to construct a quantum theory of the cosmological constant in which its presently observed very small value emerges naturally., Comment: 7 pages

Just as for the ordinary quantum harmonic oscillators, we expect the zero-point energy to play a crucial role in the correct high temperature behavior. We accordingly reformulate the theory of the statistical distribution function for the q-deformed boson oscillators and develop an approximate theory incorporating the zero-point energy. We are then able to demonstrate that for small deformations, the theory reproduces the correct limits both for very high temperatures and for very low temperatures. The deformed theory thus reduces to the undeformed theory in these extreme cases., Comment: 9 pages

We study algebraic structures underlying 't Hooft's construction relating classical systems with the quantum harmonic oscillator. The role of group contraction is discussed. We propose the use of SU(1,1) for two reasons: because of the isomorphism between its representation Hilbert space and that of the harmonic oscillator and because zero point energy is implied by the representation structure. Finally, we also comment on the relation between dissipation and quantization., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures

The influence of an external electromagnetic field on the vacuum structure of a quantized Dirac field is investigated by considering the quantum corrections to classical Maxwell's lagrangian density induced by fluctuations of the non-perturbative vacuum. Effective Lagrangian densities for Maxwell's theory in (3+1) and (2+1) dimensions are derived from the vacuum zero-point energy of the fermion field in the context of a consistent Pauli-Villars-Rayski subtraction scheme, recovering Euler-Kockel-Heisenberg and Maxwell-Chern-Simons effective theories. Effective scalar quantum electrodymanics as well as low temperature effects in both spinor and scalar theories are also discussed., Comment: LaTex file, 16 pages, no figures, new section and references added

In this paper, it is shown that a configuration modulated system described by the Frenkel-Kontorova model can be locked at an incommensurate phase when the quantum zero point energy is taken into account. It is also found that the specific heat for an incommensurate phase shows different parameter-dependence in sliding phase and pinning phase. These findings provide a possible way for experimentalists to verify the phase transition by breaking of analyticity., Comment: 6 pages in Europhys style, 3 eps figures

A possible connection between the energy W of the vacuum fluctuations of quantum fields and gravity in "empty space" is conjectured in this paper using a natural cutoff of high momenta with the help of the gravitational radius of the vacuum region considered. We found that below some "critical" length $L = 1 mm$ the pressure $sigma$ is one third of the energy density $epsilon$, as for dark matter, but above $1 mm$ the equation of state is $sigma = -(epsilon)$ (dark energy). In the case of a massive field, W does not depend on the mass of the field for $L<<1 mm$ but for $L>>1 mm$ it does not depend on the Planck constant. In addition, when the Newton constant tends to zero, W becomes infinite. The energy density is also a function of the volume V of the vacuum region taken into account., Comment: 8 pages, minor changes, new reference added

The zero-point energy of a conducting spherical shell is evaluated by imposing boundary conditions on the potential, and on the ghost fields. The scheme requires that temporal and tangential components of perturbations of the potential should vanish at the boundary, jointly with the gauge-averaging functional, first chosen of the Lorenz type. Gauge invariance of such boundary conditions is then obtained provided that the ghost fields vanish at the boundary. Normal and longitudinal modes of the potential obey an entangled system of eigenvalue equations, whose solution is a linear combination of Bessel functions under the above assumptions, and with the help of the Feynman choice for a dimensionless gauge parameter. Interestingly, ghost modes cancel exactly the contribution to the Casimir energy resulting from transverse and temporal modes of the potential, jointly with the decoupled normal mode of the potential. Moreover, normal and longitudinal components of the potential for the interior and the exterior problem give a result in complete agreement with the one first found by Boyer, who studied instead boundary conditions involving TE and TM modes of the electromagnetic field. The coupled eigenvalue equations for perturbative modes of the potential are also analyzed in the axial gauge, and for arbitrary values of the gauge parameter. The set of modes which contribute to the Casimir energy is then drastically changed, and comparison with the case of a flat boundary sheds some light on the key features of the Casimir energy in non-covariant gauges., Comment: 29 pages, Revtex, revised version. In this last version, a new section has been added, devoted to the zero-point energy of a conducting spherical shell in the axial gauge. A second appendix has also been included

In addition to the two standard solutions of the quantum field equations having the form e^{+/-(iwt-ikx)}, there exist two additional solutions of the form e^{+/-(iwt+ikx). By incorporating these latter solutions, deemed "supplemental solutions", into the development of quantum field theory, one finds a simple and natural cancellation of terms that results in an energy VEV, and a cosmological constant, of zero. This fundamental, and previously unrecognized, inherent symmetry in quantum field theory shows promise for providing a resolution of the large vacuum energy problem, simply and directly, with little modification or extension to the extant mathematics of the theory. In certain scenarios, slight asymmetries could give rise to dark energy., Comment: 15 pages, 1 figure. Vers 2 enhanced section 4, added section 5 and a figure. Vers 3 corrected minor errors and replaced Appendix A

The theory of Fermion oscillators has two essential ingredients: zero-point energy and Pauli exclusion principle. We devlop the theory of the statistical mechanics of generalized q-deformed Fermion oscillator algebra with inclusion principle (i.e., without the exclusion principle), which corresponds to ordinary fermions with Pauli exclusion principle in the classical limit $q \to 1$. Some of the remarkable properties of this theory play a crucial role in the understanding of the q-deformed Fermions. We show that if we insist on the weak exclusion principle, then the theory has the expected low temperature limit as well as the correct classical q-limit., Comment: 10 pages, Latex, submitted to Physical Review E

The simple consequences of the renormalization group invariance in calculations of the ground state energy for models of confined quantum fields are discussed. The case of (1+1)D MIT quark bag model is considered in detail., Comment: Talk at the conference Renormalization Group 2002 (March 10-16, High Tatras, Slovakia). 4 pages, LaTeX

The Casimir effect for general Robin conditions on the surface of a cylinder in $D$-spacetime dimensions is studied for massive scalar field with general curvature coupling. The energy distribution and vacuum stress are investigated. We separate volumic and superficial energy contributions, for both interior and exterior space regions. The possibility that some special conditions may be energetically singled out is indicated., Comment: 19 pages, 3 figures

We find the exact semiclassical (strong coupling) zero-point energy shifts applicable to the $e\otimes (n E)$ and $t\otimes (n H)$ dynamic Jahn-Teller problems, for an arbitrary number $n$ of discrete vibrational modes simultaneously coupled to one single electronic level. We also obtain an analytical formula for the frequency of the resulting normal modes, which has an attractive and apparently general Slater-Koster form. The limits of validity of this approach are assessed by comparison with O'Brien's previous effective-mode approach, and with accurate numerical diagonalizations. Numerical values obtained for $t\otimes (n H)$ with $n =8$ and coupling constants appropriate to C$_{60}^-$ are used for this purpose, and are discussed in the context of fullerene., Comment: 20 pages, 4 ps figures

Zero-point fluctuations in quantum fields give rise to observable forces between material bodies, the so-called Casimir forces. In these lectures I present the theory of the Casimir effect, primarily formulated in terms of Green's functions. There is an intimate relation between the Casimir effect and van der Waals forces. Applications to conductors and dielectric bodies of various shapes will be given for the cases of scalar, electromagnetic, and fermionic fields. The dimensional dependence of the effect will be described. Finally, we ask the question: Is there a connection between the Casimir effect and the phenomenon of sonoluminescence?, Comment: 55 pages, 4 ps figures, Invited Lectures at 17th Symposium on Theoretical Physics, Seoul National University, Korea, June 29-July 1, 1998

We investigate a possible difference between the effective potential and zero-point energy. We define the zero-point ambiguity (ZPA) as the difference between these two definitions of vacuum energy. Using the zeta function technique, in order to obtain renormalized quantities, we show that ZPA vanishes, implying that both of the above definitions of vacuum energy coincide for a large class of geometries and a very general potential. In addition, we show explicitly that an extra term, obtained by E. Myers some years ago for the ZPA, disappears when a scale parameter $\mu$ is consistently introduced in all zeta functions in order to keep them dimensionless., Comment: 11 pages, Latex file

Julian Schwinger became interested in the Casimir effect in 1975. His original impetus was to understand the quantum force between parallel plates without the concept of zero point fluctuations of field quanta, in the language of source theory. He went on to consider applications to dielectrics and to spherical geometries in 1977. Although he published nothing on the subject in the following decade, he did devote considerable effort to understanding the connection between acceleration and temperature in the mid 1980s. During the last four years of his life, he became fascinated with sonoluminescence, and proposed that the dynamical Casimir effect could be responsible for the copious emission of photons by collapsing air bubbles in water., Comment: 17 pages, Invited talk at the Fourth Workshop on Quantum Field Theory Under the Influence of External Conditions, Leipzig, 14-18 September, 1998. Requires sprocl.sty

The renormalized energy density of a massless scalar field defined in a D-dimensional flat spacetime is computed in the presence of "soft" and "semihard" boundaries, modeled by some smoothly increasing potential functions. The sign of the renormalized energy densities for these different confining situations is investigated. The dependence of this energy on $D$ for the cases of "hard" and "soft/semihard" boundaries are compared., Comment: 36 pages, LaTeX, 4 figures

Recent high resolution experiments show a strong peak at Q = 1.9 Ang^{-1} in liquid helium's dynamic structure factor that exhibits a singular dependence on temperature. The theoretical situation is briefly reviewed, and the comment is made that the simplest possible explanation is that at the lambda point a macroscopic number of molecules actually begin having a wavenumber k = Q \approx 1.9 Ang^{-1}. It is pointed out that the intermolecular separation at the lambda point is the right one, considering the size of helium molecules, to almost form around each molecule a three-dimensional box made of other molecules. A trapped molecule has, according to the uncertainty principle, k \approx 1.9 Ang^{-1}. An experiment with liquid helium is suggested that can help clarify the nature of the peak., Comment: 7 pages, no figures