An extensible model of the electron

Abstract

It is proposed that the electron should be considered classically as a charged conducting surface, with a surface tension to prevent it from flying apart under the repulsive forces of the charge. Such an electron has a state of stable equilibrium with spherical symmetry, and if disturbed its shape and size oscillate. The equations of motion are deduced from an action principle and a Hamiltonian formalism is obtained. The energy of the first excited state with spherical symmetry is worked out according to the Bohr-Sommerfeld method of quantization, and is found to be about 53 times the rest-energy of the electron. It is suggested that this first excited state may be considered as a muon. The present theory has no electron spin, so it cannot agree accurately with experiment.