Gamma ray bursts and a new phase of QED

Abstract

We propose a new model for gamma ray bursters inspired by attempts to explain the GSI Darmstadt peaks. In this model, the intense electromagnetic fields in the vicinity of a neutron star give rise to a new non-perturbative phase of QED. A subsequent fluctuation in the fields induces a phase transition liberating an intense burst of gamma rays and e + e − pairs. This model can explain the large energies found in such bursts, their fast rise and decay times and observed periodicities.