Ah I see. And how are they contributing? What would change if they would not be there?vanhees71 said:The anomalous ##g## factor (devisions from 2 for elementary Dirac particles like the electron or muon) are due to the radiative corrections of the ##e\bar{e}\gamma## vertex function, which are also contributing to the Lamb shift of the hydrogen-atom levels.
The Lamb Shift is a tiny energy difference between two energy levels in the hydrogen atom, first observed by Willis Lamb and his colleagues in 1947. It is caused by the interaction between the electron and the quantum fluctuations of the vacuum.
The g factor, also known as the Landé g factor, is a dimensionless quantity that describes the magnetic moment of a particle or atom. It is a measure of how much the particle's spin or orbital angular momentum responds to an external magnetic field.
The connection between the Lamb Shift and the g factor lies in the fact that the Lamb Shift is caused by the interaction between the electron and the quantum fluctuations of the vacuum, which in turn affects the electron's spin and orbital angular momentum. This results in a small change in the g factor, which can be measured experimentally.
The g factor affects the Lamb Shift by causing a small change in the energy levels of the hydrogen atom. This change is due to the interaction between the electron and the quantum fluctuations of the vacuum, which in turn affects the electron's spin and orbital angular momentum. The resulting change in the g factor can be measured as a tiny difference in the energy levels of the atom.
The study of the Lamb Shift and the g factor is important because it helps us understand the fundamental properties of matter and the quantum nature of the universe. It also has practical applications in fields such as atomic and molecular physics, quantum mechanics, and precision measurements. Additionally, the Lamb Shift and the g factor have been extensively studied and tested, providing evidence for the validity of quantum electrodynamics, one of the most successful theories in modern physics.