

Preprint 82/2004
The Topology of the Electroweak Interaction
Jürgen Tolksdorf
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Submission date: 16. Nov. 2004
Pages: 19
published in: Journal of mathematical physics, 46 (2005) 4, art-no. 042304
DOI number (of the published article): 10.1063/1.1883312
Bibtex
MSC-Numbers: 53C80, 55R10, 70S05, 70S15, 81V15
PACS-Numbers: 02.40.MA, 11.15.Ex, 12.15.-y
Keywords and phrases: bundle topology, magnetic monopoles, electroweak interaction, charge quantization
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Abstract:
In this paper we show that the Higgs boson of the (minimal) Standard Model
has at most three gauge inequivalent ground states. One of these states is
related to ordinary electromagnetism and the other two to electromagnetism
within magnetically charged vacua. If space-time is assumed to be rotationally
symmetric then the charged electroweak vacua may be identified with
Dirac monopoles of magnetic charge . This offers a
physical interpretation of magnetic monopoles and Dirac's quantization
condition of electric charge in terms of the electroweak interaction.
Moreover, in the case of the (minimal) Standard Model the three possible
gauge inequivalent ground states of the Higgs boson are shown to fully
determine the topological structure of the gauge bundle which underlies
the electroweak interaction.