Coherent-field QED transitions based on coherent-state boundary conditions

Abstract

We develop a coherent-field formulation of quantum electrodynamics (QED) based on coherent-state boundary conditions, in which laser fields are represented by asymptotic coherent states rather than by prescribed classical background fields. Starting from coherent-state boundary conditions and the displacement-operator formalism, we construct operator and path-integral descriptions of transitions between distinct electromagnetic coherent states. This formulation provides a coherent-field extension of conventional background-field QED and incorporates the quantum dynamics of the coherent field itself. The corresponding path-integral representation contains a functional integral over coherent-field histories in addition to the usual functional integral over quantum fluctuations, thereby extending the conventional background-field description. The resulting path-integral representation naturally leads to an effective action for the stationary coherent-field configuration. The corresponding saddle-point condition yields an effective Maxwell equation containing contributions from vacuum polarization, photon fluctuations, and coherent-field fluctuations. In the limit where the latter two contributions vanish, the formalism reduces to the conventional Heisenberg-Euler description.