Gao, Shan (2026) Does the Dressing Field Method Explain the Aharonov-Bohm Effect? A Critical Analysis. [Preprint]
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Abstract
The dressing field method (DFM) has been proposed as a manifestly gauge-invariant reformulation of quantum electrodynamics, with the claim that it provides a physical explanation of the Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect. In this paper, we rigorously examine this claim. We first provide a comprehensive review of the dressing field formalism, from Dirac's foundational work to contemporary developments. We then present a decisive argument demonstrating that DFM fails to explain the AB effect: before interference, the dressed field is physically identical to the bare field; during interference, the dressing factors cancel completely; and the AB phase arises solely from the bare wave function's path integrals. We conclude that DFM is a mathematically equivalent reformulation that provides no new explanatory power regarding the AB effect.
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| Item Type: | Preprint | ||||||
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| Keywords: | dressing field method; Aharonov-Bohm Effect; gauge invariance; Dirac string; path integral; quantum electrodynamics | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Physics > Fields and Particles Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Field Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics Specific Sciences > Physics > Symmetries/Invariances |
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| Depositing User: | Prof. Shan Gao | ||||||
| Date Deposited: | 05 Apr 2026 12:30 | ||||||
| Last Modified: | 05 Apr 2026 12:30 | ||||||
| Item ID: | 28905 | ||||||
| Subjects: | Specific Sciences > Physics > Fields and Particles Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Field Theory Specific Sciences > Physics > Quantum Mechanics Specific Sciences > Physics > Symmetries/Invariances |
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| Date: | 4 April 2026 | ||||||
| URI: | https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/28905 |
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