Radiative corrections to parity-non-conservation in atoms

Abstract

Recent progress in calculations of QED radiative corrections to parity nonconservation in atoms is reviewed. The QED vacuum polarization, the self-energy corrections and the vertex corrections are shown to be described very reliably by different methods used by different groups. All new calculations have recently converged to very close final values. Each separate radiative correction is very large, above 1 % for heavy atoms, but having different signs they partly compensate each other. Our results for the radiative corrections for all atoms are presented. The corrections are -0.54 % for 133 Cs, and -0.70% for 205 Tl, 208 Pb, and 209 Bi. The result for 133 Cs reconciles the most accurate atomic experimental data for the 6s-7s PNC amplitude in 133 Cs of Wood et al with the standard model.