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Main Authors: Alkhateeb, Mohammed, Matzkin, Alex
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.09066
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author Alkhateeb, Mohammed
Matzkin, Alex
author_facet Alkhateeb, Mohammed
Matzkin, Alex
contents We show, in the framework of a space-time resolved relativistic quantum field theory approach to tunneling, that microcausality precludes superluminal tunneling dynamics. More specifically in this work dealing with Dirac and Klein-Gordon fields, we first prove that microcausality holds for such fields in the presence of a background potential. We then use this result to show that an intervention performed on a localized region of an initial wave packet subsequently scattering on a potential barrier does not result in any effect outside the light cone emanating from that region. We illustrate these results with numerical computations for Dirac fermions and Klein-Gordon bosons.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_09066
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Microcausality and Tunneling Times in Relativistic Quantum Field Theory
Alkhateeb, Mohammed
Matzkin, Alex
Quantum Physics
High Energy Physics - Theory
We show, in the framework of a space-time resolved relativistic quantum field theory approach to tunneling, that microcausality precludes superluminal tunneling dynamics. More specifically in this work dealing with Dirac and Klein-Gordon fields, we first prove that microcausality holds for such fields in the presence of a background potential. We then use this result to show that an intervention performed on a localized region of an initial wave packet subsequently scattering on a potential barrier does not result in any effect outside the light cone emanating from that region. We illustrate these results with numerical computations for Dirac fermions and Klein-Gordon bosons.
title Microcausality and Tunneling Times in Relativistic Quantum Field Theory
topic Quantum Physics
High Energy Physics - Theory
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.09066