Localisation in worldline pair production and lightfront zero-modes

Abstract

The nonperturbative probability of pair production in electric fields depending on lightfront time is given exactly by the locally constant approximation. We explain this by showing that the worldline path integral defining the effective action contains a constraint, which localises contributing paths on hypersurfaces of constant lightfront time. These paths are lightfront zero-modes and there can be no pair production without them; the effective action vanishes if they are projected out.

Comments: 7 pages, 2 pdf figures. Version 3: minor update to simplify presentation, results and conclusions unchanged