On the Covariant Quantization of QED

TL;DR

This paper investigates the covariant quantization of QED, demonstrating how unphysical polarization states cancel out and ensuring well-behaved Hamiltonian and momentum operators under Lorentz conditions.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the cancellation of unphysical polarization contributions and derives the transformation of creation operators that preserves commutation relations in covariant QED.

Findings

Unphysical polarization states cancel in the Hamiltonian.

Physical states satisfying Lorentz condition lead to well-behaved operators.

Derived transformation of creation operators preserving commutation relations.

Abstract

The commutation relations for bosons are field independent, and can be reliably inferred from the definition of creation and annihilation operators. Here, the commutation relations are assumed known, and the quantum electrodynamics equations without sources are quantized with the unmodified Lagrangian. Non diagonal products of creation and annihilation operators of the form, cr(0)an(3)+ cr(3)an(0), where 0,3 denote respectively the time-like and longitudinal-polarizations, are present in both terms that contribute to the Hamiltonian. However, the contributions differ in sign, and therefore cancel. In units of the photon's energy the coefficients of the Hamiltonian's four polarization states are -1/2, 1, 1, 1/2, clearly revealing the unphysical character of the time like and longitudinal polarization states. If the physical states are restricted to those that do not contain unphysical polarization states, and if the Lorentz condition is satisfied, then the non diagonal terms of the field's momentum vanish, and both the Hamiltonian and Momentum are well behaved. A transformation of the basic vectors engenders in turn a transformation of the creation operators. The expression for the transformation that leaves invariant the commutation relations is derived.