Testing nonclassical theories of electromagnetism with ion interferometry

Area of Science:

• Fundamental physics
• Quantum mechanics
• Experimental physics

Background:

• Coulomb's inverse-square law is a cornerstone of classical electrodynamics.
• Deviations from this law could indicate new physics, such as a nonzero photon rest mass.
• Current experimental limits on such deviations are relatively weak.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and analyze a tabletop ion interferometer for searching for deviations from Coulomb's inverse-square law.
• To identify key experimental parameters for maximizing sensitivity.
• To predict the performance of such an interferometer.

Main Methods:

• Theoretical analysis of an ion interferometer.
• Identification of fundamental, experimentally controllable figures of merit.
• Calculation of expected sensitivity to deviations in the inverse-square law exponent.
• Estimation of the smallest measurable nonzero photon rest mass.

Main Results:

• Predicted sensitivity to deviations in the inverse-square law exponent is a few times 10(-22).
• This represents an improvement of 5 orders of magnitude over current experiments.
• The interferometer could measure a photon rest mass smaller than 9 x 10(-50) grams, nearly 100 times smaller than current limits.

Conclusions:

• A tabletop ion interferometer offers a promising avenue for testing fundamental physics.
• The proposed experiment could significantly improve constraints on deviations from Coulomb's law and photon mass.
• This approach provides a novel method for exploring nonclassical effects.