A λφ2n field theory without cutoffs

We consider a self-interacting scalar boson field in two-dimensional space-time with self-interaction given by an arbitrary Wick polynomial of even degree in the field. It is shown that the field theory can be constructed in a Hilbert space of physical states. The hamiltonian is a positive self-adjoint operator possessing a physical vacuum. The method of proof consists of imposing and then removing three cutoffs: a box cutoff, an ultraviolet cutoff, and a space cutoff. As the first two are removed the resolvents of the cutoff hamiltonians converge uniformly and this leads to the self-adjointness of the spatially cutoff hamiltonian.This work was supported by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Contract AT (30-1)-1480.     

Information theory, spectral geometry, and quantum gravity

We show that there exists a deep link between the two disciplines of information theory and spectral geometry. This allows us to obtain new results on a well-known quantum gravity motivated natural ultraviolet cutoff which describes an upper bound on the spatial density of information. Concretely, we show that, together with an infrared cutoff, this natural ultraviolet cutoff beautifully reduces the path integral of quantum field theory on curved space to a finite number of ordinary integrations. We then show, in particular, that the subsequent removal of the infrared cutoff is safe.     

The potential of effective field theory in NN scattering

We study an effective field theory of interacting nucleons at distances much greater than the pion's Compton wavelength. In this regime the NN potential is conjectured to be the sum of a delta function and its derivatives. The question we address is whether this sum can be consistently truncated at a given order in the derivative expansion, and systematically improved by going to higher orders. Regularizing the Lippmann-Schwinger equation using a cutoff we find that the cutoff can be taken to infinity only if the effective range is negative. A positive effective range — which occurs in nature — requires that the cutoff be kept finite and below the scale of the physics which has been integrated out, i.e. O(m_π). Comparison of cutoff schemes and dimensional regularization reveals that the physical scattering amplitude is sensitive to the choice of regulator. Moreover, we show that the presence of some regulator scale, a feature absent in dimensional regularization, is essential if the effective field theory of NN scattering is to be useful. We also show that one can define a procedure where finite cutoff dependence in the scattering amplitude is removed order by order in the effective potential. However, the characteristic momentum in the problem is given by the cutoff, and not by the external momentum. It follows that in the presence of a finite cutoff there is no small parameter in the effective potential, and consequently no systematic truncation of the derivative expansion can be made. We conclude that there is no effective field theory of NN scattering with nucleons alone.     

Quantization of Boson Fields in Quantum Geometry

It is shown that the introduction of an upper limit on the acceleration of particles provides a natural cutoff on momenta, avoiding the problem of ultraviolet divergencies in local quantum field theory. Such a cutoff turns out to be related to Planck energy.     

Construction ofYM 4 with an infrared cutoff

We provide the basis for a rigorous construction of the Schwinger functions of the pure SU(2) Yang-Mills field theory in four dimensions (in the trivial topological sector) with a fixed infrared cutoff but no ultraviolet cutoff, in a regularized axial gauge. The construction exploits the positivity of the axial gauge at large field. For small fields, a different gauge, more suited to perturbative computations is used; this gauge and the corresponding propagator depends on large background fields of lower momenta. The crucial point is to control (in a non-perturbative way) the combined effect of the functional integrals over small field regions associated to a large background field and of the counterterms which restore the gauge invariance broken by the cutoff. We prove that this combined effect is stabilizing if we use cutoffs of a certain type in momentum space. We check the validity of the construction by showing that Slavnov identities (which express infinitesimal gauge invariance) do hold non-perturbatively.     

Precise numerical results for limit cycles in the quantum three-body problem

The study of the three-body problem with short-range attractive two-body forces has a rich history going back to the 1930s. Recent applications of effective field theory methods to atomic and nuclear physics have produced a much improved understanding of this problem, and we elucidate some of the issues using renormalization group ideas applied to precise nonperturbative calculations. These calculations provide 11-12 digits of precision for the binding energies in the infinite cutoff limit. The method starts with this limit as an approximation to an effective theory and allows cutoff dependence to be systematically computed as an expansion in powers of inverse cutoffs and logarithms of the cutoff. Renormalization of three-body bound states requires a short range three-body interaction, with a coupling that is governed by a precisely mapped limit cycle of the renormalization group. Additional three-body irrelevant interactions must be determined to control subleading dependence on the cutoff and this control is essential for an effective field theory since the continuum limit is not likely to match physical systems (e.g., few-nucleon bound and scattering states at low energy). Leading order calculations precise to 11-12 digits allow clear identification of subleading corrections, but these corrections have not been computed.     

Unrenormalizable theories can be predictive

Unrenormalizable theories contain infinitely many free parameters. Considering these theories in terms of the Wilsonian renormalization group (RG), we suggest a method for removing this large ambiguity. Our basic assumption is the existence of a maximal ultraviolet cutoff in a cutoff theory, and we require that the theory be so fine tuned as to reach the maximal cutoff. The theory so obtained behaves as a local continuum theory to the shortest distance. In concrete examples of the scalar theory we find that at least in a certain approximation to the Wilsonian RG, this requirement enables us to make unique predictions in the infrared regime in terms of a finite number of independent parameters. Therefore, this method might provide a way for calculating quantum corrections in a low-energy effective theory of quantum gravity. Received: 28 March 2002 / Revised version: 28 May 2002 / Published online: 31 October 2002     

The Free Energy and Entropy of Schwarzschild Black Hole Due to Scalar Field

Using the thin film brick-wall model,taking into account the effect of the generalized uncertainty principle on the equation of the density of the states, we calculate the free energy and entropy of schwarzschild black hole due to scalar field, we obtain the entropy proportional to the event horizon area without cutoff. This implies that quantum theory of gravity can remove the divergence of the state density on the event horizon and avoid the cutoff in the original brick-wall model, these results also mean that the thin film brick-wall model is universal. PACS: 0420;9760L.     

A Consistency Check for the Free Scalar Field Theory Realization of the Doubly Spacial Relativity *

We study a free scalar field theory in the framework of the Magueijo-Smolin model of the "Doubly Special Relativity" (DSR) which is a non-linear realization of the action of the Lorentz group on momentum space admitting an invariant energy cutoff. We show that unlike the standard quantum field theory, the Klein-Gordon equation obtained via Euler-Lagrange field equation and Heisenberg picture equation of motion of the field are not equivalent in this framework, at least up to the first order of the Planck length scale.     

New massive gravity and AdS(4) counterterms

We show that the recently proposed Dirac-Born-Infeld extension of new massive gravity emerges naturally as a counterterm in four-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS(4)). The resulting on-shell Euclidean action is independent of the cutoff at zero temperature. We also find that the same choice of counterterm gives the usual area law for the AdS(4) Schwarzschild black hole entropy in a cutoff-independent manner. The parameter values of the resulting counterterm action correspond to a c=0 theory in the context of the duality between AdS(3) gravity and two-dimensional conformal field theory. We rewrite this theory in terms of the gauge field that is used to recast 3D gravity as a Chern-Simons theory.     

Holographic cosmological constant and dark energy

A general holographic relation between UV and IR cutoff of an effective field theory is proposed. Taking the IR cutoff relevant to the dark energy as the Hubble scale, we find that the cosmological constant is highly suppressed by a numerical factor and the fine tuning problem seems alleviative. We also use different IR cutoffs to study the case in which the universe is composed of matter and dark energy.     

The three-boson system with short-range interactions

We discuss renormalization of the non-relativistic three-body problem with short-range forces. The problem is non-perturbative at momenta of the order of the inverse of the two-body scattering length. An infinite number of graphs must be summed, which leads to a cutoff dependence that does not appear in any order in perturbation theory. We argue that this cutoff dependence can be absorbed in one local three-body force counterterm and compute the running of the three-body force with the cutoff. This allows a calculation of the scattering of a particle and the two-particle bound state if the corresponding scattering length is used as input. We also obtain a model-independent relation between binding energy of a shallow three-body bound state and this scattering length. We comment on the power counting that organizes higher-order corrections and on relevance of this result for the effective field theory program in nuclear and molecular physics.     

On the Renormalization of the One–Pion Exchange Potential and the Consistency of Weinberg’s Power Counting

Nogga, Timmermans and van Kolck recently argued that Weinberg’s power counting in the few–nucleon sector is inconsistent and requires modifications. Their argument is based on the observed cutoff dependence of the nucleon–nucleon scattering amplitude calculated by solving the Lippmann–Schwinger equation with the regularized one–pion exchange potential and the cutoff Λ varied in the range Λ = 2 . . . 20 fm^?1. In this paper we discuss the role the cutoff plays in the application of chiral effective field theory to the two–nucleon system and study carefully the cutoff–dependence of phase shifts and observables based on the one–pion exchange potential. We show that (i) there is no need to use the momentum–space cutoff larger than Λ ~ 3 fm^?1; (ii) the neutron–proton low–energy data show no evidence for an inconsistency of Weinberg’s power counting if one uses Λ ~ 3 fm^?1.     

Regularization,renormalization and “peratization” in effective field theory for two nucleons

We discuss conceptual aspects of renormalization in the context of effective field theories for the two-nucleon system. It is shown that, contrary to widespread belief, the renormalization scheme dependence of the scattering amplitude can only be eliminated up to the order the calculations are performed. We further consider an effective theory for an exactly solvable quantum mechanical model which possesses a long- and short-range interaction to simulate pionful effective field theory. We discuss the meaning of low-energy theorems in this model and demonstrate their validity in calculations with a finite cutoff \( \Lambda\) as long as it is chosen of the order of the hard scale in the problem. Removing the cutoff by taking the limit \( \Lambda\) \( \rightarrow\) ∞ yields a finite result for the scattering amplitude but violates the low-energy theorems and is, therefore, not compatible with the effective field theory framework.     

The Weak Gravity Conjecture and emergence from an ultraviolet cutoff

We study ultraviolet cutoffs associated with the Weak Gravity Conjecture (WGC) and Sublattice Weak Gravity Conjecture (sLWGC). There is a magnetic WGC cutoff at the energy scale \(e G_N^{-1/2}\) with an associated sLWGC tower of charged particles. A more fundamental cutoff is the scale at which gravity becomes strong and field theory breaks down entirely. By clarifying the nature of the sLWGC for nonabelian gauge groups we derive a parametric upper bound on this strong gravity scale for arbitrary gauge theories. Intriguingly, we show that in theories approximately saturating the sLWGC, the scales at which loop corrections from the tower of charged particles to the gauge boson and graviton propagators become important are parametrically identical. This suggests a picture in which gauge fields emerge from the quantum gravity scale by integrating out a tower of charged matter fields. We derive a converse statement: if a gauge theory becomes strongly coupled at or below the quantum gravity scale, the WGC follows. We sketch some phenomenological consequences of the UV cutoffs we derive.     

Wilsonian Renormalization Group and the Lippmann-Schwinger Equation with a Multitude of Cutoff Parameters

The Wilsonian renormalization group approach to the Lippmann-Schwinger equation with a multitude of cutoff parameters is introduced.A system of integro-differential equations for the cutoff-dependent potential is obtained.As an illustration,a perturbative solution of these equations with two cutoff parameters for a simple case of an S-wave low-energy potential in the form of a Taylor series in momenta is obtained.The relevance of the obtained results for the effective field theory approach to nucleon-nucleon scattering is discussed.     

Violation of finite-size scaling in three dimensions

We reexamine the range of validity of finite-size scaling in the lattice model and the field theory below four dimensions. We show that general renormalization-group arguments based on the renormalizability of the theory do not rule out the possibility of a violation of finite-size scaling due to a finite lattice constant and a finite cutoff. For a confined geometry of linear size L with periodic boundary conditions we analyze the approach towards bulk critical behavior as at fixed for where is the bulk correlation length. We show that for this analysis ordinary renormalized perturbation theory is sufficient. On the basis of one-loop results and of exact results in the spherical limit we find that finite-size scaling is violated for both the lattice model and the field theory in the region . The non-scaling effects in the field theory and in the lattice model differ significantly from each other. Received 5 February 1999     

Triviality of Quantum Electrodynamics Revisited

Quantum electrodynamics is often considered to be a trivial theory.This is based on a number of evidences,both numerical and analytical.One of the strong indications for triviality of QED is the existence of the Landau pole for the running coupling.We show that by treating QED as the leading order approximation of an effective field theory and including the next-to-leading order corrections,the Landau pole is removed.We also analyze the cutoff dependence of the bare coupling at two-loop order and conclude that the conjecture,that for reasons of self-consistency,QED needs to be trivial is a mere artefact of the leading order approximation to the corresponding effective field theory.     

光束成丝的非线性理论

在考虑调制场和本底场之间有能量交换的情况下,研究了小尺度调制场的非线性演化过程,结果表明,受到小尺度调制的光束在传输过程中有可能经历周期性成丝过程,通过与Bespalov-Talanov(B-T)关于成丝的线性理论比较,发现B－T理论给出的最快增长频率和临界频率等结果在非线性演化过程中仍然是适用的,但其给出的调制增长纺只在调制场的初始增长阶段与本文的非线性理论一致,此后,调制场的增长速度低于指数形式的增长速率,达到某个最大值后将经历周期性变化过程。