Self-force: Computational Strategies

TL;DR

This paper reviews computational strategies for calculating self-force effects on small bodies in physics, focusing on three main methods: mode-sum regularization, effective source approaches, and worldline convolution techniques.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of the implementation details and key features of the three primary computational methods for self-force calculations.

Findings

Detailed comparison of the three approaches

Insights into practical implementation challenges

Highlights of each method's advantages and limitations

Abstract

Building on substantial foundational progress in understanding the effect of a small body's self-field on its own motion, the past 15 years has seen the emergence of several strategies for explicitly computing self-field corrections to the equations of motion of a small, point-like charge. These approaches broadly fall into three categories: (i) mode-sum regularization, (ii) effective source approaches and (iii) worldline convolution methods. This paper reviews the various approaches and gives details of how each one is implemented in practice, highlighting some of the key features in each case.