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Evolution of the fine-structure constant in the non-linear regime

P. P. Avelino·C. J. A. P. Martins·J. Menezes·C. Santos
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Abstract

We study the evolution of the fine-structure constant, $α$, induced by non-linear density perturbations in the context of the simplest class of quintessence models with a non-minimal coupling to the electromagnetic field, in which the two available free functions (potential and gauge kinetic function) are Taylor-expanded up to linear order. We show that the results obtained using the spherical infall model for an infinite wavelength inhomogeneity are inconsistent with the results of a local linearized gravity study and we argue in favour of the second approach. We also discuss recent claims that the value of $α$ inside virialised regions could be significantly different from the background one on the basis of these findings.

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P. P. Avelino, C. J. A. P. Martins, J. Menezes, C. Santos. 2005-12-13. Evolution of the fine-structure constant in the non-linear regime. https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516%2F2006%2F12%2F018

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