High-intensity scaling in UV-modified QED

TL;DR

This paper investigates how UV modifications to QED influence its high-intensity behavior, revealing that such modifications lead to a faster increase in scattering cross sections with field intensity.

Contribution

It demonstrates that UV modifications alter the high-intensity scaling of observables in QED, specifically showing a different power-law behavior in non-linear Compton scattering.

Findings

UV modification causes faster power-law scaling of cross sections

High-intensity behavior depends on UV properties of the theory

Altered scaling could impact predictions in strong-field QED

Abstract

QED perturbation theory in a background field has been conjectured to break down for sufficiently high field intensity. The high-intensity behavior of a field theory is however intertwined with its high-energy (UV) behavior. Here we show that a UV modification of QED changes the high-intensity behaviour of observables. Specifically we study non-linear Compton scattering in a constant crossed field in QED with an additional Pauli term. In the UV modified theory the cross section exhibits a faster power-law scaling with intensity than in ordinary QED.