 Solution

Use $\hslash =c=1$ and the mostly-plus Minkowski metric. Then the source's Klein-Gordon equation is $({\partial }_t^2-{\nabla }^2+m^2)\varphi =0$. For a plane wave $\varphi =C{e}^{-i\omega t+i\mathbf{k}\cdot \mathbf{x}}$, substitution givesThus a real propagating wave vector requires $|\omega |\ge m$, or $|E|\ge m{c}^2$ on restoring units. The positive-energy branch has a rest-energy threshold $m{c}^2$. At $|\omega |=m$, $\mathbf{k}=0$; frequencies below the mass threshold give evanescent spatial dependence rather than real-wave-vector propagation. Both signs of $\omega$ occur in the classical equation; a real scalar field combines complex-conjugate modes. Its group velocity is $\mathbf{k}/\omega$ and is subluminal, though the positive-branch phase speed exceeds one when $m>0$.

For a static spherically symmetric scalar field, the equation outside the source isSetting $\psi =r\varphi$ gives ${\psi }^{\prime \prime }-m^2\psi =0$, soDecay at infinity selects $B=0$, the Yukawa potential. It is singular at the origin and describes a point source distributionally; a source-free solution regular at the origin and decaying at infinity must be zero. For $m=0$, $\varphi =A/r+B$, and decay sets the constant $B$ to zero.