On the question of quark confinement in the Abelian U(1) QED gauge interaction

Abstract

If we approximate light quarks as massless and apply the Schwinger confinement mechanism to light quarks, we will reach the conclusion that a light quark $q$ and its antiquark $\bar q$ will be confined as a $q\bar q$ boson in the Abelian U(1) QED gauge interaction in (1+1)D, as in an open string. From the work of Coleman, Jackiw, and Susskind, we can infer further that the Schwinger confinement mechanism persists even for massive quarks in (1+1)D. Could such a QED-confined $q\bar q$ one-dimensional open string in (1+1)D be the idealization of a flux tube in the physical world in (3+1)D, similar to the case of QCD-confined $q\bar q$ open string? If so, the QED-confined $q\bar q$ bosons may show up as neutral QED mesons in the mass region of many tens of MeV (PRC81(2010)064903 & JHEP2020(8)165). Is it ever possible that a quark and an antiquark be produced and interact in QED alone to form a confined QED meson? Is there any experimental evidence for the existence of a QED meson (or QED mesons)? The observations of the anomalous soft photons, the X17 particle, and the E38 particle suggest that they may bear the experimental evidence for the existence of such QED mesons. Further confirmation and investigations on the X17 and E38 particles will shed definitive light on the question of quark confinement in QED in (3+1)D. Implications of quark confinement in the QED interaction are discussed.