This book seeks to present a new way of thinking about the interaction of gravitational fields with quantum systems. Despite the massive amounts of research and experimentation, the myriad meetings, seminars and conferences, all of the articles, treatises and books, and the seemingly endless theorization, quantization and just plain speculation that have been engaged in regarding our evolving understanding of the quantum world, that world remains an enigma, even to the experts. The usefulness of general relativity in this regard has proven to be imperfect at best, but there is a new approach. We do not simply have to accept the limitations of Einstein's most celebrated theorem in regard to quantum theory; we can also embrace them, and thereby utilize them, to reveal new facts about the behavior of quantum systems within inertial and gravitational fields, and therefore about the very structure of space-time at the quantum level. By taking existing knowledge of the essential functionality of spin (along with the careful identification of the omnipresent inertial effects) and applying it to the quantum world, the book gives the reader a much clearer picture of the difference between the classical and quantum behaviors of a particle, shows that Einstein's ideas may not be as incompatible within this realm as many have come to believe, sparks new revelations of the way in which gravity affects quantum systems and brings a new level of efficiency-quantum efficiency, if you will-to the study of gravitational theory.

Autorentext

G. Lambiase is Professor at the Università di Salerno, Italy. He serves as National Coordinator of the INFN project and Local Coordinator of FARB grant. He has been Member of the local team of the PRIN and of the International Ph.D. in Physics in "Gravitational Physics and Astrophysics" at the University of Salerno, a joint operation with Portsmouth University (GB) and Zurich University (CH). He also has served as Adviser at the International Institute for Advanced Scientific Studies, Vietri sul Mare, Italy. His main fields of interest are quantum field theory, general theories of gravity, astroparticles, astrophysics and cosmology. G. Papini is Professor emeritus at the University of Regina, Canada, as well as Professor and Head of that same school's Physics Department. He is Adviser at the International Institute for Advanced Scientific Studies, Vietri sul Mare, Italy; the Institute of Field Physics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N.C. USA; and the Institute for Advanced Studies, Dublin, Ireland. His main fields of interest are the interaction of gravity with quantum systems, the general theory of relativity and relativistic theories of gravitation.

Inhalt

Table of ContentsIntroductionChapter 1 - Quantum Systems In Gravitational Fields1.1 Introduction1.2 Wave equations1.2.1 The Schroedinger equation1.2.2 The Klein-Gordon Equation1.2.3 Spin-1 equations1.2.4 Spin-gravity coupling for spin-1 particles1.2.5 The Dirac equation in curved space-time1.2.6 The Geometry of a Rotating Body: The Lense-Thirring metric1.2.7 Vierbeins for accelerating and rotating systems1.2.8 The generally covariant Dirac equation1.2.9 Spin-2 Particles in Gravitational Fields1.2.10 Solution of the spin-2 wave equation1.2.11 Helicity-gravity coupling and geometrical optics1.3 The e ect of space-time curvature on Hilbert Space. Berry phaseChapter 2 - Applications2.1 Introduction2.1.1 Superconductors2.1.2 Gravitational waves and super uids2.1.3 Gravitational red-shift2.1.4 Schwarzschild metric2.1.5 Lense-Thirring eld of Earth2.1.6 Bound states of ultra cold neutrons in Earth's gravitational eld2.2 Spin-rotation coupling2.2.1 Spin-rotation coupling in muon g-2 experiments2.2.2 Spin-rotation coupling and limits on P and T invariance2.3 Spin-rotation coupling in compound spin objects2.4 Interferometers in various metrics2.4.1 Interferometer in the eld of Earth2.4.2 Rotation2.4.3 The Lense-Thirring e ect for quantum systems2.5 Zitterbewegung and gravitational Berry phase2.5.1 Dirac and Klein-Gordon equations2.6 Wave optics2.7 Helicity precession of fermions in gravitational elds2.8 Chirality precession of fermions in gravitational elds2.9 Space-times with torsion2.9.1 Spin- ip transition in spacetimes with torsionChapter 3 - Neutrinos in Gravitational Fields3.1 Introduction3.1.1 Neutrino helicity oscillations3.1.2 Helicity oscillations in a medium3.1.3 Neutrino avour oscillations3.2 Neutrino Optics3.3 Helicity Transition Induced by Gravitational Fields3.4 Neutrino Flavour Oscillations3.5 Neutrino Lensing3.6 Spin-Gravity Coupling of Neutrinos with Primordial Gravitational Waves3.7 Pulsar KickChapter - 4 Radiative Processes, Spin Currents, Vortices4.1 Radiative Processes4.2 Spin Currents in Gravitational Fields4.3 Vortices4.3.1 Spin- 1/2 fermionsChapter 5 - Other developments5.1 Scalar-Pseudoscalar Coupling And The Search For Axions5.2 Axion Electrodynamics5.3 The Extended Bargmann-Michel-Telegdi ModelConclusionsUnits and Fundamental ConstantsBibliography