1987m

The following is a conference paper by H. Aspden presented at a NATO Advanced Research Workshop held in Bridgeport, Connecticut, June 23-27, 1986. It was published in 1987 by Plenum Press in 'Quantum Uncertainties' Eds. Honig, Kraft & Panarella, NATO ASI Series B; Physics Volume 162 at pp. 245-359.

THE THEORETICAL NATURE OF THE PHOTON IN A LATTICE VACUUM

Abstract: This paper summarizes the author's theory of the photon, showing how Planck's radiation law can be derived from aether theory involving a structured aether in which charges occupy lattice sites set in an electrically neutralizing background continuum.

The advance in this paper is to draw attention to an open issue which has bearing upon a potential paradox. The theory gives reason for suspecting that, though h is invariant in the formula E=hf, the energy quantum shed by an atom in producing the photon radiation may have a very small amount of its energy deployed into priming the perturbation of the photon spin at the frequency f. The result should be that h, as measured from analysis of optical spectra will appear to be larger by a few parts in ten million compared with the value exhibited, for example, in Josephson and quantized Hall resistance experiments. Precision measurements of the fine structure constant by different techniques may eventually clarify this issue.

See reference [1986k], the research contribution of which was inspired by the author's attendance at this NATO meeting. The photon theory is there advanced to explain the causal basis of electron diffraction and extended to account for single neutron diffraction.