Consistency of a Causal Theory of Radiative Reaction with the Optical Theorem

Consistency of a Causal Theory of Radiative 

Reaction with the Optical Theorem

F. Intravaia, R. Behunin, P. W. Milonni

(Submitted on 14 Jul 2011)

The Abraham-Lorentz-Dirac equation for a point electron, while suffering from runaway solutions and an acausal response to external forces, is compatible with the optical theorem. We show that a theory of radiative reaction that allows for a finite charge distribution is not only causal and free of runaway solutions, but is also consistent with the optical theorem and the standard formula for the Rayleigh scattering cross section.

Comments:	4 pages, 2 figures
Subjects:	Quantum Physics (quant-ph); High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
Cite as:	arXiv:1107.2851v1 [quant-ph]