Gao, Shan (2025) The Aharonov-Bohm Effect Explained: Reality of Gauge Potentials and Its Implications. [Preprint]

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Abstract

The Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect, wherein an electron acquires a phase shift in a field-free region due to electromagnetic potentials, poses a profound challenge to the ontology of quantum mechanics and gauge theories. This paper demonstrates that gauge-invariant explanations, which attribute the phase to measurable quantities, rely on nonlocal and discontinuous mechanism and fail to account for its continuous accumulation along the electron's path—a process evident in the generalized AB effect, where a time-varying magnetic flux induces a phase that builds gradually over time, as predicted by quantum mechanics. Through a new analysis spanning quantum mechanics and quantum electrodynamics, I argue that the electromagnetic potentials $A_\mu$, fixed in the Lorenz gauge, emerge as the fundamental physical reality, offering a local, relativistically consistent account of the phase’s generation. This exclusion of gauge-invariant paradigms reverberates across gauge theories: it redefines the Higgs mechanism, favoring dynamic potentials over static invariants, and extends to general relativity, where gravitational potentials $g_{\mu\nu}$ may anchor spacetime’s substantival reality via a gravitational AB effect. By unraveling the AB phase’s continuous generation—locally mediated by potentials—this study not only addresses a long-standing conundrum but also bridges electromagnetic, gravitational, and Yang-Mills frameworks, offering a unified potential-centric perspective with novel implications for physics and philosophy.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Gao, Shan sgao7319@uni.sydney.edu.au
Keywords:	Aharonov-Bohm effect; gauge potentials; quantum mechanics; gauge theories; Higgs mechanism; Yang-Mills; general relativity; spacetime
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Physics > Cosmology Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Field Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics Specific Sciences > Physics > Relativity Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Symmetries/Invariances
Depositing User:	Prof. Shan Gao
Date Deposited:	17 Mar 2025 16:10
Last Modified:	17 Mar 2025 16:10
Item ID:	24913
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Physics > Cosmology Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Field Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics Specific Sciences > Physics > Relativity Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Symmetries/Invariances
Date:	16 March 2025
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/24913

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