Electromagnetic superconductivity of vacuum induced by strong magnetic field: Numerical evidence in lattice gauge theory

Using numerical simulations of quenched SU(2) gauge theory we demonstrate that an external magnetic field leads to spontaneous generation of quark condensates with quantum numbers of electrically charged rho mesons if the strength of the magnetic field exceeds the critical value eB(c) = 0.927(77) GeV2 or B-c = (1.56 +/- 0.13) center dot 10(16) Tesla. The condensation of the charged rho mesons in strong magnetic field is a key feature of the magnetic-field-induced electromagnetic superconductivity of the vacuum. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.