The use of light front coordinates allows a fully relativistic description of a hadron's spatial densities to be obtained. These densities must be two-dimensional and transverse to a chosen spatial direction. We explore their relationship to the three-dimensional, non-relativistic densities, with a focus on densities associated with the energy momentum tensor. The two-dimensional non-relativistic densities can be obtained from the light front densities through a non-relativistic limit, and can subsequently be transformed into three-dimensional non-relativistic densities through an inverse Abel transform. However, this operation is not invertible, and moreover the application of the inverse Abel transform to the light front densities does not produce a physically meaningful result. We additionally find that the Abel transforms of so-called Breit-frame densities generally differ significantly from the true light front densities. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the various differences between the light front, Breit frame, and non-relativistic treatment of densities.
We explore the structure of the spin-1/2 flavor-octet baryons (hyperons) through their electromagnetic transverse densities. The transverse densities describe the distribution of charge and magnetization at fixed light-front time and enable a spatial representation of the baryons as relativistic systems. At peripheral distances b~1/M_pi the transverse densities are computed using a new method that combines chiral effective field theory and dispersion analysis. The peripheral isovector densities arise from two-pion exchange, which includes the rho-meson resonance through elastic unitarity. The …
An unambiguous definition of the electromagnetic spatial densities for a spin-1/2 system is proposed and worked out in the zero average momentum frame and in moving frames. The obtained results are compared with the traditional definition of the densities in terms of the three-dimensional Fourier transforms of the electromagnetic form factors in the Breit frame.
Skew density matrices can be diagonalized to yield probability interpretation. The power-counting prediction of perturbative QCD is found consistent with recent CEBAF data on $F_2(Q^2)/F_1(Q^2)$
In a set of two papers, we propose to study an old-standing problem, namely the electromagnetic interaction for particles of arbitrary spin. Based on the assumption that light-cone helicity at tree level and $Q^2=0$ should be conserved non-trivially by the electromagnetic interaction, we are able to derive \emph{all} the natural electromagnetic moments for a pointlike particle of \emph{any} spin. In this second paper, we give explicit expressions for the light-cone helicity amplitudes in terms of covariant vertex functions, leading to the natural electromagnetic moments at $Q^2=0$. As an appli…
Recent progress on the extraction of electromagnetic properties of nucleon resonance excitation through pion photo- and electroproduction is reviewed. Cross section data measured at MAMI, ELSA, and CEBAF are analyzed and compared to the analysis of other groups. On this basis, we derive longitudinal and transverse transition form factors for most of the four-star nucleon resonances. Furthermore, we discuss how the transition form factors can be used to obtain empirical transverse charge densities. Contour plots of the thus derived densities are shown for the Delta, Roper, S11, and D13 nucleon …
Densities associated with the energy-momentum tensor are calculated for spin-one targets. These calculations are done in a light front formalism, which accounts for relativistic effects due to boosts and allows for arbitrary spatial localization of the target. These densities include the distribution of momentum, angular momentum, and pressures over a two-dimensional plane transverse to the light front. Results are obtained for both longitudinally and transversely polarized targets, and the formalism is tailored to allow the possibility of massless targets. The momentum density and pressure di…
We investigate the flavour decomposition of the electromagnetic form factors of the nucleon, based on the chiral quark-soliton model ($χ$QSM) with symmetry-conserving quantisation. We consider the rotational $1/N_c$ and linear strange-quark mass ($m_s$) corrections. We discuss the results of the flavour-decomposed electromagnetic form factors in comparison with the recent experimental data. In order to see the effects of the strange quark, we compare the SU(3) results with those of SU(2). We finally discuss the transverse charge densities for both unpolarised and polarised nucleons. The transv…
We discuss the techniques to extract the electromagnetic Delta form factors in Lattice QCD. We evaluate these form factors using dynamical fermions with smallest pion mass of about 350 MeV. We pay particular attention to the extraction of the electric quadrupole form factor that signals a deformation of the Delta. The magnetic moment of the $Δ$ is extrapolated using a chiral effective field theory. Using the form factors we evaluate the transverse density distributions in the infinite momentum frame showing deformation in the Delta.
The connection between the Feynman triangle diagram and the light-front formalism for spin-0 and spin-1 two-fermion systems is analyzed. It is shown that in the limit q+ = 0 the form factors for both spin-0 and spin-1 systems can be uniquely determined using only the good amplitudes, which are not affected by spurious effects related to the loss of rotational covariance present in the light-front formalism. At the same time, the unique feature of the suppression of the pair creation process is maintained. Therefore, a physically meaningful one-body approximation, in which all the constituents …
Using the recent empirical information on the deuteron electromagnetic form factors we map out the transverse charge density in the deuteron as viewed from a light front moving towards the deuteron. The charge densities for a transversely polarized deuteron are characterized by monopole, dipole and quadrupole patterns.
Schwinger pair production in some of space-dependent electromagnetic fields is studied analytically by using worldline instantons formalism for scalar quantum electrodynamics. With the increase of the modified Keldysh parameter $γ_{keb}$, the pair production rate decreases, the region of instanton paths expands regardless of the electromagnetic field form. We also find that all of the paths of the instantons for various electromagnetic fields are exactly in the same plane while with the different elliptical shapes. Moreover, the magnitudes of the normalized instantons action with different ext…
Electromagnetic form factors have long been used to probe the underlying charge and magnetization densities of hadrons and nuclei. Traditional three-dimensional Fourier transform methods are not rigorously applicable for systems with constituents that move relativistically. The use of the transverse charge density is a new, rigorously defined way to analyze electromagnetic form factors of hadrons.This review is concerned with the following issues: what is a transverse charge density; how is one extracted one from elastic scattering data; the existing results; what is the relationship with othe…
We discuss the recent interpretation of quark distribution functions in the plane transverse to the light-cone direction. Such a mapping is model independent and allows one to build multidimensional pictures of the hadron and to develop a semi-classical intuition of the quark dynamics. We comment briefly the results obtained from the Form Factors of the nucleon. A generalization to a target with arbitrary spin led to a set of preferred values for the electromagnetic coupling characterizing structureless particles. Generalized polarizabilities can also be interpreted in that frame as the distor…
The electromagnetic emission rates at SPS energies satisfy spectral constraints in leading order in the pion and nucleon densities. These constraints follow from the strictures of broken chiral symmetry. We saturate these constraints using available data, leading to model independent emission rates from a hadronic gas. With a simple fire-ball scenario, only large nucleon densities may account for the present CERES data.
The quantum phase-space approach allows one to define relativistic spatial distributions inside a target with arbitrary spin and arbitrary average momentum. We apply this quasiprobabilistic formalism to the whole electromagnetic four-current operator in the case of spin-$0$ and spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ targets, study in detail the frame dependence of the corresponding spatial distributions, and compare our results with those from the light-front formalism. While former works focused on the charge distributions, we extend here the investigations to the current distributions. We clarify the role playe…
We summarize recent work in determining the transition form factor (TFF) of the neutral pion ($π^0 \to γ^*γ^*$), by solving the non-perturbative Dyson-Schwinger and Bethe-Salpeter equations. We first study the transition form factor, followed by the rare decay $π^0 \to e^+ e^- $, which requires the TFF as input. In addition to the aspects of truncation required to compute the solution, we discuss unexpected behavior in the large $Q^2$ regime (with $Q^2$ the photon virtuality), and also touch on a path deformation in the complex plane to access the total decay rate for the rare decay.
The electromagnetic elastic form factors of pseudoscalar and vector mesons are analyzed for space-like momentum transfers in terms of relativistic quark models based on the Hamiltonian light-front formalism elaborated in different reference frames (q+ 0 and q+ <> 0). As far as the one-body approximation for the electromagnetic current operator is concerned, it is shown that the predictions of the light-front approach at q+=0 should be preferred, particularly in case of light hadrons, because of: i) the relevant role played by the Z-graph at q+ <> 0, and ii) the appropriate elimination of spuri…
Numerical calculations are performed and compared to the experimental data for the electromagnetic form factor of the kaon, which is extracted from both components of the electromagnetic current, $J^{+}$ and $J^{-}$, with a pseudo-scalar coupling of the quarks to the kaon. In the case of $J^{+}$ there is no pair term contribution in the Drell-Yan frame ($q^{+}=0$). However, for $J^{-}$, the pair term contribution is different from zero and necessary in order to preserve the rotational symmetry of the current. The free parameters are the quark masses and the regulator mass.
The electromagnetic form factor of the pion is calculated within the use of functional formalism. We develop integral representation for the minimal set of Standard Model Green's functions and derive the dispersion relation for the form factor in the two flavor QCD isospin limit $m_u=m_d$. We use the dressed quark propagator as obtained form the gap equation in Minkowski space and within the Dyson-Schwinger equations formalism to derive the approximate dispersion relation for the form factor for the first time. We evaluate the form factor for the spacelike as well as for the timelike momentum …
We develop Wigner - Weyl formalism for the lattice models. For the definiteness we consider Wilson fermions in the presence of $U(1)$ gauge field. The given technique reduces calculation of the two point fermionic Green function to solution of the Groenewold equation. It relates Wigner transformation of the Green function with the Weyl symbol $Q_W$ of Wilson Dirac operator. We derive the simple expression for $Q_W$ in the presence of varying external $U(1)$ gauge field. Next, we solve the Groenewold equation to all orders in powers of the derivatives of $Q_W$. Thus the given technique allows t…
We apply the light-front reduction of the Bethe-Salpeter equation to matrix elements of the electromagnetic current between bound states. Using a simple (1+1)-dimensional model to calculate form factors, we focus on two cases. In one case, the interaction is dominated by a term instantaneous in light-cone time. Here effects of higher Fock states are negligible and the form factor can be effectively expressed using non-wave function vertices and crossed interactions. If the interaction is not instantaneous, non-wave function vertices are replaced by contributions from higher Fock states. These …
Using recent experimental data, we analyze the electromagnetic transition from the nucleon to the P11(1440) resonance. From the resulting empirical transition form factors, we map out the quark transverse charge densities which induce the N to P11(1440) transition. It is found that the transition from the proton to its first radially excited state is dominated by up quarks in a central region of around 0.5 fm and by down quarks in an outer band which extends up to about 1 fm.
We present a systematical study on the kaon electromagnetic form factors $F_{K^{\pm},K^0,\bar{K}^0}(Q^2)$ within the $k_T$ factorization formalism, where the transverse momentum effects, the contributions from the different helicity components and different twist structures of the kaon light-cone (LC) wave function are carefully analyzed for giving a well understanding of the hard contributions at the energy region where pQCD is applicable. The right power behavior of the hard contribution from the higher helicity components and from the higher twist structures can be obtained by keeping the $…
We develop the in-out formalism for one-loop effective actions in electromagnetic fields in the space-dependent gauge. We further advance a method using the inverse scattering matrix to calculate the effective actions in pure magnetic fields, find the effective actions in a constant magnetic field and a localized Sauter-type magnetic field and apply the uniform semiclassical approximation to the effective action in a general magnetic field. In the in-out formalism we show that the one-loop effective actions in constant fields and Sauter-type fields exhibit the electromagnetic duality.
We discuss two applications of the {\it Virtuality Distribution Amplitudes} (VDA) formalism developed in our recent papers. We start with an overview of the main properties of the pion distribution amplitude emphasizing the quantitative measures of its width, and possibility to access them through the pion transition form factor studies. We formulate the basic concepts of the VDA approach and introduce the pion transverse momentum distribution amplitude (TMDA) which plays, in a covariant Lagrangian formulation, a role similar to that of the pion wave function in the 3-dimensional Hamiltonian l…
We study the ratio $R\equivμG_E(Q^2)/G_M(Q^2)$ of the proton at very small values of $Q^2$. Radii commonly associated with these form factors are not moments of charge or magnetization densities. We show that the form factor $F_2$ is correctly interpretable as the two-dimensional Fourier transformation of a magnetization density. A relationship between the measurable ratio and moments of true charge and magnetization densities is derived. We find that existing measurements show that the magnetization density extends further than the charge density, in contrast with expectations based on the me…
The classical electromagnetic field of a spinless point electron is described in a formalism with extended causality by discrete finite transverse point-vector fields with discrete and localized point interactions. These fields are taken as a classical representation of photons, ``classical photons". They are all transversal photons; there are no scalar nor longitudinal photons as these are definitely eliminated by the gauge condition. The angular distribution of emitted photons coincides with the directions of maximum emission in the standard formalism. The Maxwell formalism and its standard …
A simple exact covariant model in which a scalar particle is modeled as a bound state of two different particles is used to elucidate relativistic aspects of electromagnetic form factors. The model form factor is computed using an exact covariant calculation of the lowest-order triangle diagram and shown to be the same as that obtained using light-front techniques. The meaning of transverse density is explained using coordinate space variables, allowing us to identify a true mean-square transverse size directly related to the form factor. We show that the rest-frame charge distribution is gene…
The electromagnetic form factor of the pion is calculated in a pseudoscalar field theoretical model which constituent quarks. We extract the form factor using the "+" component of the electromagnetic current in the light-cone formalism. For comparison, we also compute the form factor in the covariant framework and we obtain perfect agreement. It is shown that the pair terms do not contribute in this pseudoscalar model. This explains why a naive light-cone calculation, i.e., omitting pair terms from the onset, also yields the same results.
Parity violating electron nucleus scattering is a clean and powerful tool for measuring the spatial distributions of neutrons in nuclei with unprecedented accuracy. Parity violation arises from the interference of electromagnetic and weak neutral amplitudes, and the $Z^0$ of the Standard Model couples primarily to neutrons at low $Q^2$. The data can be interpreted with as much confidence as electromagnetic scattering. After briefly reviewing the present theoretical and experimental knowledge of neutron densities, we discuss possible parity violation measurements, their theoretical interpretati…
Within the recently proposed Lorentz invariant formalism for description of neutrino spin evolution in presence of an arbitrary electromagnetic fields effects of matter motion and polarization are considered.
The classical electromagnetic field of a spinless point electron is described in a formalism with extended causality by discrete finite point-vector fields with discrete and localized point interactions. These fields are taken as a classical representation of photons, "classical photons". They are all transversal photons; there are no scalar nor longitudinal photons and the Lorentz gauge condition is automatically satisfied. The angular distribution of emitted photons reproduces the directions of maximum emission of the standard formalism. The Maxwell formalism in terms of continuous and distr…
We calculate the Wigner function for massive spin-1/2 particles in an inhomogeneous electromagnetic field to leading order in the Planck constant $\hbar$. Going beyond leading order in $\hbar$ we then derive a generalized Boltzmann equation in which the force exerted by an inhomogeneous electromagnetic field on the particle dipole moment arises naturally. Carefully taking the massless limit we find agreement with previous results. The case of global equilibrium with rotation is also studied. Finally, we outline the derivation of fluid-dynamical equations from the components of the Wigner funct…
We develop a general formalism to treat reflection of spherical electromagnetic waves from a spherical surface. Our main objective is interpretation of radio wave signals produced by cosmic ray interactions with Earth's atmosphere which are observed by the Antarctica based ANITA detector after reflection off the ice surface. The incident wave is decomposed into plane waves and each plane wave is reflected off the surface using the standard Fresnel formalism. For each plane wave the reflected wave is assumed to be locally a plane wave. This is a very reasonable assumption and there are no uncon…
