| Speaker: | Robert Caldwell (Dartmouth College) |
|---|---|
| Title: | Ideas for lab tests of dark energy |
| Date (JST): | Thu, Apr 11, 2013, 13:30 - 14:30 |
| Place: | Seminar Room A |
| Related File: | 907.pdf |
| Abstract: | A cosmic scalar field evolving very slowly in time can account for the observed dark energy of the Universe. Unlike a cosmological constant, an evolving scalar field also has local spatial gradients due to gravity. If the scalar field has a minimal derivative coupling to electromagnetism, it will cause modifications of Maxwell's equations. In particular, in the presence of a scalar field gradient generated by Earth's gravity, regions with a magnetic field appear to be electrically charged and regions with a static electric field appear to contain electric currents. We propose experiments to detect such effects with sensitivity exceeding current limits on scalar field interactions from measurements of cosmological birefringence. |
