SEMICLASSICAL ELECTRODYNAMICS - A MODEL FOR SEMICLASSICAL GRAVITY

We consider the QED process involving the breakup of a neutral, spherical object into a charged inner core and equal, but oppositely charged expanding outer shell, such that a substantial amount of pair creation occurs. We show, under certain conditions, that semiclassical electrodynamics gives a good description at late times, when pair creation has ceased to good approximation. We also outline a method for testing the semiclassical approximation during the dynamical stage, when pair creation is taking place. The underlying motivation for this investigation is to understand better some of the issues concerning semiclassical gravity.