Bound-state field theory approach to proton structure effects in muonic hydrogen

TL;DR

This paper develops a bound-state field theory model for muonic hydrogen, incorporating proton structure effects such as polarizability and self-energy modifications, to improve understanding of proton contributions in muonic systems.

Contribution

It introduces a novel bound-state field theory approach with a quark-based proton model to evaluate proton structure effects in muonic hydrogen.

Findings

Calculated proton electric polarizability within the model

Analyzed two-photon exchange effects including proton polarizability

Examined the proton's electromagnetic self-energy modification by the muon’s electric field

Abstract

A bound-state field theory approach to muonic hydrogen is set up using a variant of the Furry representation in which the lowest-order Hamiltonian describes a muon in the presence of a point Coulomb field, but the origin of the binding field is taken to be three charged quarks in the proton which are modeled as Dirac particles that move freely within a spherical well. Bound-state field theory techniques are used to evaluate one- and two-photon effects. Particular attention is paid to two-photon exchange diagrams, which include the effect of proton polarizability. In addition the modification of the electromagnetic self energy of the proton by the electric field of the muon is examined. Finally, the model is used to carry out a calculation of the static electric polarizability of the proton.