Accelerated Electrons and the Unruh Effect

TL;DR

This paper investigates quantum effects on electrons in a storage ring, linking spin polarization and orbital fluctuations to the Unruh effect, revealing thermal excitations due to acceleration.

Contribution

It models electrons as two-level systems in an accelerated frame, connecting spin flip radiation to the Unruh effect and emphasizing the role of orbital fluctuations.

Findings

Spin flip synchrotron radiation causes polarization effects.

Orbital fluctuations significantly influence quantum excitations.

The Unruh effect manifests as thermal excitations in accelerated electrons.

Abstract

Quantum effects for electrons in a storage ring are studied in a co-moving, accelerated frame. The polarization effect due to spin flip synchrotron radiation is examined by treating the electron as a simple quantum mechanical two-level system coupled to the orbital motion and to the radiation field. The excitations of the spin system are related to the Unruh effect, i.e. the effect that an accelerated radiation detector is thermally excited by vacuum fluctuations. The importance of orbital fluctuations is pointed out and the vertical fluctuations are examined.