Strong laser fields as a probe for fundamental physics

TL;DR

Upcoming high-intensity laser systems will enable the exploration of unobserved quantum electrodynamics phenomena and search for new physics through nonlinear vacuum responses and photon interactions in strong electromagnetic fields.

Contribution

This paper reviews recent advances in using strong laser fields to probe fundamental physics, including estimates of new physics parameter space accessible with upcoming laser facilities.

Findings

Potential to observe nonlinear QED vacuum effects

Laser experiments can detect new light, weakly interacting particles

Estimates of parameter space accessible at POLARIS and ELI

Abstract

Upcoming high-intensity laser systems will be able to probe the quantum-induced nonlinear regime of electrodynamics. So far unobserved QED phenomena such as the discovery of a nonlinear response of the quantum vacuum to macroscopic electromagnetic fields can become accessible. In addition, such laser systems provide for a flexible tool for investigating fundamental physics. Primary goals consist in verifying so far unobserved QED phenomena. Moreover, strong-field experiments can search for new light but weakly interacting degrees of freedom and are thus complementary to accelerator-driven experiments. I review recent developments in this field, focusing on photon experiments in strong electromagnetic fields. The interaction of particle-physics candidates with photons and external fields can be parameterized by low-energy effective actions and typically predict characteristic optical signatures. I perform first estimates of the accessible new-physics parameter space of high-intensity laser facilities such as POLARIS and ELI.