Is there any mechanism within a reasonable amount of deviation from current physics that can lower the speed of light within a vacuum for a given region of spacetime?
I can theorize some effects this may cause, for example, decreasing c would impact both electromagnetic constants in Maxwell's equations by some factor n<1, making electric fields n times stronger and magnetic fields 1/n times as strong. The fine structure constant ? would increase, therefore making larger structures such as large atomic nuclei or larger molecules unstable are ? gets larger. Reducing c also causes nuclear energy production to decrease as per e=mc^2, making stars shrink as they reach a new equilibrium with gravity.
As for the mechanism for lowering c itself, I originally though by inducing photon mass through the Higgs Field or by creating a scalar field that induces photon mass, c may be lowered, but it appears that the speed a photon travels does not affect c.
Any thoughts?
I can theorize some effects this may cause, for example, decreasing c would impact both electromagnetic constants in Maxwell's equations by some factor n<1, making electric fields n times stronger and magnetic fields 1/n times as strong. The fine structure constant ? would increase, therefore making larger structures such as large atomic nuclei or larger molecules unstable are ? gets larger. Reducing c also causes nuclear energy production to decrease as per e=mc^2, making stars shrink as they reach a new equilibrium with gravity.
As for the mechanism for lowering c itself, I originally though by inducing photon mass through the Higgs Field or by creating a scalar field that induces photon mass, c may be lowered, but it appears that the speed a photon travels does not affect c.
Any thoughts?
