Quantum Field Theory, Worldline Theory, and Spin Magnitude Change in Orbital Evolution

TL;DR

This paper clarifies the role of Wilson coefficients in field theories of spinning bodies, showing how they relate to spin state transitions and can lead to changes in spin magnitude during orbital evolution, with implications for general relativity.

Contribution

It introduces a new electrodynamics-based theory with Wilson coefficients, linking quantum spin transitions to classical orbital dynamics and comparing it with worldline approaches.

Findings

Wilson coefficients relate to quantum spin state transitions.

Spin magnitude can change under Hamiltonian dynamics due to Wilson coefficients.

The theory matches Compton amplitudes with modified worldline models.

Abstract

A previous paper~\cite{Bern:2022kto} identified a puzzle stemming from the amplitudes-based approach to spinning bodies in general relativity: additional Wilson coefficients appear compared to current worldline approaches to conservative dynamics of generic astrophysical objects, including neutron stars. In this paper we clarify the nature of analogous Wilson coefficients in the simpler theory of electrodynamics. We analyze the original field-theory construction, identifying definite-spin states some of which have negative norms, and relating the additional Wilson coefficients in the classical theory to transitions between different quantum spin states. We produce a new version of the theory which also has additional Wilson coefficients, but no negative-norm states. We match, through $\mathcal O(\alpha^2)$ and $\mathcal O(S^2)$, the Compton amplitudes of these field theories with those of a modified worldline theory with extra degrees of freedom introduced by releasing the spin supplementary condition. We build an effective two-body Hamiltonian that matches the impulse and spin kick of the modified field theory and of the worldline theory, displaying additional Wilson coefficients compared to standard worldline approaches. The results are then compactly expressed in terms of an eikonal formula. Our key conclusion is that, contrary to standard approaches, while the magnitude of the spin tensor is still conserved, the magnitude of the spin vector can change under conserved Hamiltonian dynamics and this change is governed by the additional Wilson coefficients. For specific values of Wilson coefficients the results are equivalent to those from a definite spin obeying the spin supplementary condition, but for generic values they are physically inequivalent. These results warrant detailed studies of the corresponding issues in general relativity.