The Stern-Gerlach interaction between a traveling particle and a time varying magnetic field

Abstract

The general expression of the Stern-Gerlach force is deduced for a charged particle, endowed with a magnetic moment, which travels inside a time varying magnetic field. Then, the energy integral of the Stern-Gerlach force is evaluated in the case of a particle crossing a TE rf cavity with its magnetic moment oriented in different ways with respect as the cavity axis. We shall demonstrate that appropriate choices of the cavity characteristics and of the spin orientation confirm the possibility of separating in energy the opposite spin states of a fermion beam circulating in a storage ring and, in addition, make feasible an absolute polarimeter provide that a parametric converter acting between two coupled cavities is implemented