https://doi.org/10.1140/epjc/s10052-019-7384-1
Regular Article - Theoretical Physics
Pauli–Villars regularization elucidated in Bopp–Podolsky’s generalized electrodynamics
1
Department of Physics, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-8202, USA
2
Physics Department, La Sierra University, Riverside, CA, 92505, USA
3
Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz-DCET, Ilheus, BA, 45662-900, Brazil
4
Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia, Itapetinga, BA, CEP: 45700-000, Brazil
* e-mail: thibes@uesb.edu.br
Received:
2
August
2019
Accepted:
7
October
2019
Published online:
23
October
2019
We discuss an inherent Pauli–Villars regularization in Bopp–Podolsky’s generalized electrodynamics. Introducing gauge-fixing terms for Bopp–Podolsky’s generalized electrodynamic action, we realize a unique feature for the corresponding photon propagator with a built-in Pauli–Villars regularization independent of the gauge choice made in Maxwell’s usual electromagnetism. According to our realization, the length dimensional parameter a associated with Bopp–Podolsky’s higher order derivatives corresponds to the inverse of the Pauli–Villars regularization mass scale 
, i.e. 
. Solving explicitly the classical static Bopp–Podolsky’s equations of motion for a specific charge distribution, we explore the physical meaning of the parameter a in terms of the size of the charge distribution. As an offspring of the generalized photon propagator analysis, we also discuss our findings regarding on the issue of the two-term vs. three-term photon propagator in light-front dynamics.
© The Author(s), 2019
