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Enhancement of vacuum polarization effects in a plasma

A. Di Piazza, K. Z. Hatsagortsyan, C. H. Keitel

hep-pharXiv:hep-ph/0606059

Abstract

The dispersive effects of vacuum polarization on the propagation of a strong circularly polarized electromagnetic wave through a cold collisional plasma are studied analytically. It is found that, due to the singular dielectric features of the plasma, the vacuum effects on the wave propagation in a plasma are qualitatively different and much larger than those in pure vacuum in the regime when the frequency of the propagating wave approaches the plasma frequency. A possible experimental setup to detect these effects in plasma is described.

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