How to do mean field theory in Feynman gauge and doing it for U(1) with corrections to fourth order

It is demonstrated how mean field theory with corrections from fluctuations may be applied to lattice gauge theories in covariant gauges. By fixing the gauge at tree level the importance of fluctuations is decreased. This is understood as inclusion of terms of next-to-leading-order in d in the definition is the mean field tree approximation, d being the dimension of the lattice. The gauge group U(1) and Wilson's action are used as testing ground. Tree and one-loop results comparable to those previously obtained in axial gauge are obtained for d = 4. The next three correction terms to the free and plaquette energies are evaluated in Feynman gauge. The truncated asymptotic series thus obtained is compared to that of the ordinary weak coupling expansion. The mean field series gives, to those orders studied, a much better approximation. The location of phase transitions in 4d and 5d are predicted with 1% error bars.     

Dynamical generation of a Coulomb phase in the mean-field approach to Z(N) lattice gauge theories

The phase diagram of Z(N) lattice gauge theories is examined in the mean-field approach. It is shown how large non-perturbative fluctuations around the mean-field may naturally occur in these theories. When this happens, a massless phase which is absent in the mean-field approximation is dynamically generated. An order parameter which characterizes the Coulomb to Higgs phase transition is introduced. The predictions for the values of the critical coupling for this transition are in excellent agreement with the Monte Carlo data in four dimensions.     

The mean-field approximation in the SU(2) pure lattice gauge theory

The phase structure of the SU(2) pure lattice gauge theory with two coupling constants is derived in the mean-field approximation. The obtained phase diagram agrees with Monte Carlo results. The technique used here allows the computation of further corrections.     

QCD calculations in the light-cone gauge

The non-singlet quark structure function is calculated in the leading logarithm approximation in an axial gauge with n² = 0, the light-cone gauge. The choice n² = 0 leads to a simple identity for loop integrals involving the extra n · k denominators. We compare the results graph by graph with both Feynman gauge QCD and a scalar gluon theory. The leading diagrams are the same “rainbow” diagrams as for the case of the scalar theory.The techniques are also applied to quark-quark scattering at large transverse momentum. The leading diagrams have the same dressed ladder-form factor structure.     

Perturbation theory in the temporal gauge and time exponentiation of the Feynman kernel

In this paper we present a critical discussion of perturbation theory in the temporal gauge in the framework of the finite-time formulation given by Rossi and Testa.We find an interesting intrinsic freedom in the definition of the Feynman rules which nevertheless can be unambiguously derived. We compute the vacuum expectation value of a rectangular Wilson loop to order g⁴, proving the expected exponentiation of its time dependence.     

Feynman rules for Coulomb gauge QCD

The Coulomb gauge in nonabelian gauge theories is attractive in principle, but beset with technical difficulties in perturbation theory. In addition to ordinary Feynman integrals, there are, at 2-loop order, Christ–Lee (CL) terms, derived either by correctly ordering the operators in the Hamiltonian, or by resolving ambiguous Feynman integrals. Renormalization theory depends on the sub-graph structure of ordinary Feynman graphs. The CL terms do not have a sub-graph structure. We show how to carry out renormalization in the presence of CL terms, by re-expressing these as ‘pseudo-Feynman’ integrals. We also explain how energy divergences cancel.     

Gravitational correction to running of gauge couplings

We calculate the contribution of graviton exchange to the running of gauge couplings at lowest non-trivial order in perturbation theory. Including this contribution in a theory that features coupling constant unification does not upset this unification, but rather shifts the unification scale. When extrapolated formally, the gravitational correction renders all gauge couplings asymptotically free.     

The temporal axial gauge at finite temperature explored using the real time formalism

The temporal axial gauge is discussed at zero temperature and extended to finite temperature. A set of Feynman rules is determined within the real-time formalism which allows one to do perturbation theory at finite temperature using the temporal gauge. As a demonstration of the Feynman rules derived we do a simple linear response analysis for the gluon plasma at high temperature. This analysis yields a positive damping constant to one loop order in the long-wavelength limit. The problem of the imaginary-time formalism is discussed.     

A quasi-temporal gauge

We prove that a complete fixing of the temporal gauge,A _o =0, in which one imposesa subsidiary gauge condition, such as, for instance ?_i A _i (x,t ₀) = 0 leads to consistent formulation of the theory with simple Feynman rulesand a well defined gluon propagator. The correct exponentiation of the time dependence of the Wilson loop has been checked to occur up to order g⁴.     

The structure of Yang-Mills theories in the temporal gauge: (II). Perturbation theory

In this paper we construct the perturbative expansion for the Feynman propagation kernel of a Yang-Mills theory in the A₀ = 0 gauge in any external charge sector, by using the expression of the kernel derived in a previous paper. Unlike the usual one, in this formulation of perturbation theory there are no spurious poles at zero energy transfer in the (effective) gauge field propagator. Examples of calculations of the static potential between external (infinitely heavy) non-abelian charges and of scattering amplitudes are discussed in detail.     

Quantum Ising-like spin-j model with multipole-multipole interactions: Second order mean-field approach

A quantum Ising-like spin-j model, characterized by arbitrary multipole-multipole interactions as well as external fields, is proposed and analyzed. A thorough discussion of the algebraic properties of the dynamical variables (which belong to SU(2j+1)) is performed, whereby by the application of an improved version of the mean-field theory (which has the usual mean-field theory as its zeroeth order approximation) an explicit expression for the free energy is derived.     

Proof of chiral symmetry breaking in strongly coupled lattice gauge theory

We study chiral symmetry in the strong coupling limit of lattice gauge theory with staggered fermions and show rigorously that chiral symmetry is broken spontaneously in massless QED and the gauge-invariant Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model if the dimension of spacetime is at least four. The results for the chiral condensate as a function of the mass imply that the mean-field approximation is an upper bound for this observable which becomes exact as the dimension goes to infinity. For the model with gauge groupU(N),N=2,3,4, we prove that chiral long-range order exists at zero mass in four or more dimensions. Address after August 1991: Mathematics Department, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada V6T1Y4     

Two-loop free energy for finite temperatureSU(3) gauge theory in a constant external field

A two-loop calculation of the free energy for finite temperatureSU(3) gauge theory in an external fieldA ₀=const is carried out using background Feynman gauge. Nontrivial minima of the free energy are obtained atA ₀{gT forg→0 corresponding to the gauge symmetry breakingSU(3)→U(1)×U(1). Higher order perturbative effects are briefly discussed.     

Implicit regularization beyond one-loop order: gauge field theories

We extend a constrained version of implicit regularization (CIR) beyond one-loop order for gauge field theories. In this framework, the ultraviolet content of the model is displayed in terms of momentum loop integrals order by order in perturbation theory for any Feynman diagram, while the Ward–Slavnov–Taylor identities are controlled by finite surface terms. To illustrate, we apply CIR to massless abelian gauge field theories (scalar and spinorial QED) to two-loop order and calculate the two-loop beta-function of spinorial QED. PACS  11.10.Gh; 11.15.Bt; 11.15.-q     

A path-functional field theory of lattice gauge models and the large-N limit

We transform lattice gauge models to a theory of functional fields defined on a set of closed paths. Some relevant properties of the formalism are discussed in detail, with emphasis on symmetry and topological structure. We then investigate the large-N limit of the U(N) lattice gauge model in arbitrary dimensions using this formalism. Assuming the existence of the limit, we show, to arbitrary order of the strong coupling expansion parameter (g²N)^?, which is kept fixed, that for the leading contribution in the limit: (i) the flow of indices in color space can be represented by planar diagrams; (ii) when the diagrams are immersed in space-time they are random surfaces without handles; (iii) there are interactions of the surfaces which can be depicted as the formation of multisheet bubblesw in the surfaces. This formalism also makes it possible to set up a gauge-invariant mean-field approximation.     

The size of finite size effects in lattice gauge theories

If a quantum field is enclosed in a spatial box of finite volume, its mass spectrum depends on the box size L. For field theories in the continuum Lüscher has shown to all orders in perturbation theory that for large L this dependence is related to certain scattering amplitudes of the infinite volume theory. We derived the corresponding relations for lattice field theories. Assuming their validity for lattice gauge theory outside the perturbative region the magnitude of finite size effects on the spectrum is determined by a glueball coupling constant. This quantity is estimated by strong coupling methods.     

Effects of pair correlation on mean-field theory of BTW sand pile model

We extend the mean-field calculation of BTW sand pile model to one that includes the correlation between pairs of nearest neighbors. Specifically, we derive dynamical equations of both one-site and two-site densities, and solve the equations order by order starting with the mean-field solution. The investigation provides analytical results for both stationary and dynamic states of the sand pile near the critical point, which are valid in the regime where h?ε²?1 (h= incoming rate of sand grains, ε=bulk dissipation rate of sand grains). In the stationary case, we evaluate the pair correlation and the correction to the mean-field single-site densities due to the correlation. The correction is found to be of the same order as the mean-field solution. In the dynamic case, the initial state deviates from the stationary state by a small fluctuation, which subsequently decays exponentially, with the time constant being reduced from the corresponding mean-field value. Again, the correction to the time constant in this case is found comparable to the mean-field value itself.     

Universal properties of U(1) gauge theories

The previously known analogies between four-dimensional compact U(1) lattice gauge theories and the two-dimensional planar model are extended to a number of other results. We show that the monopoles in the gauge theory renormalize the coupling constant α by an amount proportional to the susceptibility of the monopole gas. Confinement occurs when this susceptibility diverges. We argue that α is analogous to the critical exponent η of the planar model, and that the transition occurs at a universal critical value α_c.We also define an analogue of the superfluid density for the gauge theory, in terms of the dependence of the free energy on the boundary conditions, and show that it is universally related to α. Finally, we show that the same physics emerges from a continuum U(1) theory with real magnetic monopoles.