THE HAWKING-UNRUH TEMPERATURE AND QUANTUM FLUCTUATIONS IN PARTICLE ACCELERATORS

T = ¯ 2…ck ; where g is the acceleration due to gravity at the surface of the black hole, c is the speed of light, and k is Boltzmann’s constant. Shortly thereafter Unruh 2 argued that an accelerated observer should become excited by quantum fluctuations to a temperature T = ¯ ? 2…ck ; where a ? is the acceleration of the observer in its instantaneous rest frame. In a series of papers Bell and coworkers 3i5 have noted that electron storage rings provide a demonstration of the utility of the Hawking-Unruh temperature, with emphasis on the question of the incomplete polarization of the electrons due to quantum fluctuations of synchrotron radiation. Here we expand slightly on the results of Bell et al., and encourage the reader to consult the literature for more detailed understanding.