Two applications of axion electrodynamics

Abstract

The equations of axion electrodynamics are studied. Variations in the axion field can give rise to peculiar distributions of charge and current. These effects provide a simple understanding of the fractional electric charge on dyons and of some recently discovered oddities in the electrodynamics of antiphase boundaries in PbTe. Some speculations regarding the possible occurrence of related phenomena in other solids are presented.