Quantum Electrodynamics in Fundamental Physics and Applications

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。量子电动力学是物理学中经过最精确测试的理论，它是我们目前对自然理解的基石。已知最精确的基本常数是用这个理论确定的，这个领域的理论计算需要一些迄今为止在理论物理学中设计的最先进的计算方法。计划阐明各种高阶修正项的性质，这些修正项代表了进一步理解基本常数的障碍，特别是里德伯常数。此外，描述原子的远距离（非接触）相互作用需要复杂的形式。这些相互作用实际上是通过所谓的量子场的虚激发进行的。各种相关的相互作用，包括由于非接触摩擦造成的能量损失，在微观世界中还没有得到充分的理解，但对于纳米结构器件的设计（纳米技术）来说却很重要。这项工作的更广泛影响将包括基于可计算原子跃迁的潜在的新的基本可计算时间标准，这对于各种工业应用是必要的，也使科学家能够发现各种基本常数之间的关系。另一个影响是用于描述物理和技术过程的所谓特殊函数的数值算法，以及用于也可设想工业应用的矩阵对角化的数值算法。研究生的教育是研究工作不可分割的一部分。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Quantum electrodynamics is the most accurately tested theory in physics, and it is a cornerstone of our current understanding of nature. The most accurately known fundamental constants are determined using the theory, and theoretical calculations in this field require some of the most advanced computational methods devised so far in theoretical physics. It is planned to illuminate the nature of various higher-order correction terms that represent obstacles to a further understanding of fundamental constants, notably, the Rydberg constant. Also, the description of long-range (non-contact) interactions of atoms requires a sophisticated formalism. These interactions actually proceed via so-called virtual excitations of quantum fields. Various related interactions, including the loss of energy due to non-contact friction, have not been sufficiently understood in the microscopic world and yet are important, e.g., for the design of nanostructured devices (nanotechnology).The broader impact of the work will include potential new fundamental calculable standards of time, based on calculable atomic transitions, which are necessary for a variety of industrial applications and also enable scientists to find relations among various fundamental constants. Another impact is on numerical algorithms for so-called special functions describing physical and technical processes, and for the diagonalization of matrices where industrial applications can also be envisaged. The education of a graduate student forms an integral part of the research endeavour.