8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 1/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 2/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 3/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 4/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 5/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 6/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 7/8

8/13/2019 R.P. Feynman - A relativistic cut-off for classical electrodynamics

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rp-feynman-a-relativistic-cut-off-for-classical-electrodynamics 8/8

946

the  Ao-quanta . What  results  is  that  light  goes

by retarded waves, A0-quanta by advancedwaves,  and the rad iation resistance of both

contribute posit ively . Thus an accelerat ing

charge wil l emit  light, but it is predestined that

negative  energy  Ao-quanta were  coming  toward

it to be absorbed , st ill further increas ing theradiat ion resistance . This  avoids  the  divergent

solutions only to predict observable advancede fects .

For these reasons  it is better to  restrict one-

' This may  be understood  in  that ,  as  indicated   above,the energy-absorbing walls of the box absorb retardedlight waves , but  cannot be presumed   to  absorb  retardedXo-quanta.  Instead ,  in  fact,  they spontaneously emit suchwaves (warming up in the process) and non-divergentsolutions  result  only  if  they  emit  just  exactly the  Xo-quanta which can later be absorbed  by  the  accelerating harge at the center .

self  to  the  case  of  a  decaying /-function (dis-

tribut ion of A) for  which a consistent theorycan be made. Then the mod iica tions of classica l

electrodynamics will  only  appear  at very  small

distances from a charge . On the other hand,

these distances are well within the Compton

wave-length so that modiicat ions caused byquantum mechanics would  in  any  case  appear

before  the  ones here discussed . There  is,  there-

fore ,  litt le  reason  to believe  that  the  ideas used

here to solve the divergences of classical electro-

dynamics wil l  prove  fruitful  for quantum   elec-

trodynamics. Nevertheless, the corresponding

modiica tions were attempted with quantum

electrodynamics and appear to solve some of

the  divergence  dif iculties  of  that  theory . This

will be discussed in a future paper .