Schwinger effect and backreaction in de Sitter spacetime

Abstract We consider the particle–antiparticle pairs produced by both a strong electric field and de Sitter curvature. We investigate in 1 + 1 D the backreaction of the pairs on the electromagnetic field. To do so we describe the canonical quantization of an electromagnetic field in de Sitter space and add in the Einstein–Maxwell equation the fermionic current induced by the pairs. After solving this equation, we find that the electric field gets either damped or unaffected depending on the value of the pair mass and the gauge coupling. No enhancement of the electromagnetic field to support a magnetogenesis scenario is found. The physical picture is that the Schwinger pairs locally created screen the production and amplification of the electromagnetic field. However, if one considers light bosons created by the Schwinger mechanism, we report a solution to the Einstein–Maxwell equation with an enhancement of the electromagnetic field. This solution could be a new path to primordial magnetogenesis.