The Instantaneous Bethe-Salpeter Equation and Its Analog: the Breit-like Equation

Abstract

We take ($\mu^\pm e^\mp$) systems and consider the states with quantum number $J^P=0^-$ as examples, to explore the different contents of the instantaneous Bethe-Salpeter (BS) equation and its analog, Breit equation, by solving them exactly. The results show that the two equations are not equivalent, although they are analogous. Furthermore, we point out that the Breit equation contains extra un-physical solutions, so it should be abandoned if one wishes to have an accurate description of the bound states for the instantaneous interacting binding systems.