Revisiting the Wu–Yang approach to magnetic charge

Abstract

The Wu–Yang fiber bundle approach to magnetic charge is extended with a disk-like sheet current density and associated magnetic field in the overlap region between the Northern hemisphere and Southern hemisphere, where the different vector potentials connect. This disk magnetic field plays a role similar to the Dirac string in the Dirac approach to magnetic charge — it brings an inward magnetic flux of $4\pi g$ which then gives rise to an outward Coulomb magnetic flux of $4\pi g$. As with the Dirac string approach we show that placing an electric charge near this disk magnetic field gives rise to a non-zero electromagnetic field momentum. We discuss some of the possible physical consequences of this electromagnetic field momentum. We conclude by showing that the non-singular, but non-single valued Banderet monopole potential also has a disk-like magnetic flux and non-zero electromagnetic field momentum in the presence of an electric charge.