Relativistic and Nonrelativistic Descriptions of Electron Energy Levels in a Static Magnetic Field

TL;DR

This paper compares relativistic and nonrelativistic models of electron energy levels in a static magnetic field, highlighting significant differences and calling for experimental verification to resolve the discrepancy.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of relativistic and nonrelativistic descriptions of electron energy levels in magnetic fields, emphasizing the substantial differences at typical field strengths.

Findings

Nonrelativistic and relativistic energy levels differ significantly at 1 Tesla.

Discrepancies can be up to several orders of magnitude.

Experimental verification is needed to determine the correct model.

Abstract

The physical consequences of the relativistic and nonrelativistic approaches to describe the energy levels of electrons which propagate in a static homogeneous magnetic field are considered. It is shown that for a given strength of the magnetic field, the quantized energy levels of the electrons calculated by nonrelativistic and relativistic equations differ substantially, up to few orders of magnitude for a magnetic field of about 1 Tesla. Experimental verification to resolve the discrepancy would be very welcome.