Observation of Aharonov–Bohm effects by neutron interferometry
Samuel A. Werner, Anthony G. Klein
The special and unique techniques of neutron interferometry have been used to observe a number of topological effects. These include the quantum mechanical phase shift of a neutron due to the Earth's rotation (the quantum analog of the Michelson–Gale–Pearson experiment with light), the phase shift of a particle carrying a magnetic moment (a neutron) encircling a line charge (the Aharonov–Casher effect) and the scalar Aharonov–Bohm effect, observed with a pulsed magnetic field solenoid and time-of-flight neutron detection. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Aharonov–Bohm paper, we provide an overview of the neutron interferometry technique and a description of these three historic experiments.
Journal of Physics A Mathematical and Theoretical•Aug 12, 2010•16 citations