A new semiclassical interpretation of the Lamb shift

A modification of a previous semiclassical explanation of the Lamb shift is shown to be applicable to all levels in hydrogenic ions. The phenomenon responsible for the level shifts has not been considered explicitly in other quantum electrodynamic or semiclassical theories, but it is shown that it should be a source of observable energy changes. An approximate calculation for hydrogen s states gives ΔE1s=0.25748 cm−1 (experimental ΔE1s=0.2722 cm−1), ΔE2s=0.03755 cm−1 =1125.7 MHz (experimental ΔE2s=0.03528 cm−1), and ΔE3s=0.01166 cm−1 (experimental ΔE3s =0.0088 cm−1), but more important is the demonstration of an effect which should apparently be involved in any theory of the Lamb shift.