High-precision nonperturbative QCD

Recent advances in lattice QCD have resulted in the first simulations with realistic quark vacuum polarization. Consequently a wide variety of high-precision (few percent) nonperturbative calculations are possible now. This paper reviews the recent developments that make this possible, and presents early evidence that the era of high-precision nonperturbative QCD is at hand. It also discusses the future impact of lattice QCD on experiments, and particularly for heavy-quark physics.     

High-precision determination of the pi, K, D, and Ds decay constants from lattice QCD

We determine D and D(s) decay constants from lattice QCD with 2% errors, 4 times better than experiment and previous theory: f(D(s))=241(3) MeV, f(D)=207(4) MeV, and fD(s))/f(D)=1.164(11). We also obtain f(K)/f(pi)=1.189(7) and (f(D(s))/f(D))/(f(K)/f(pi))=0.979(11). Combining with experiment gives V(us)=0.2262(14) and V(cs)/V(cd) of 4.43(41). We use a highly improved quark discretization on MILC gluon fields that include realistic sea quarks, fixing the u/d, s, and c masses from the pi, K, and eta(c) meson masses. This allows a stringent test against experiment for D and D(s) masses for the first time (to within 7 MeV).     

Parton distributions from lattice QCD

We extract the x dependence of the valence nonsinglet u - d distribution function in the nucleon from the lowest few moments calculated on the lattice, using an extrapolation formula which ensures the correct behavior in the chiral and heavy quark limits. We discuss the implications for the quark mass dependence of meson masses lying on the J^PC = 1^{– -} Regge trajectory.     

Form factors in lattice QCD

Lattice simulations of QCD have produced precise estimates for the masses of the lowest-lying hadrons which show excellent agreement with experiment. By contrast, lattice results for the vector and axial vector form factors of the nucleon show significant deviations from their experimental determination. We present results from our ongoing project to compute a variety of form factors with control over all systematic uncertainties. In the case of the pion electromagnetic form factor we employ partially twisted boundary conditions to extract the pion charge radius directly from the linear slope of the form factor near vanishing momentum transfer. In the nucleon sector we focus specifically on the possible contamination from contributions of higher excited states. We argue that summed correlation functions offer the possibility of eliminating this source of systematic error. As an illustration of the method we discuss our results for the axial charge, g _A , of the nucleon.     

QCD thermodynamics from the lattice

We review the current methods and results of lattice simulations of quantum chromodynamics at nonzero temperatures and densities. The review is intended to introduce the subject to interested nonspecialists and beginners. It includes a brief overview of lattice gauge theory, a discussion of the determination of the crossover temperature, the QCD phase diagram at zero and nonzero densities, the equation of state, some in-medium properties of hadrons including charmonium, and some plasma transport coefficients.     

Nuclear physics from lattice QCD

We review recent progress toward establishing lattice Quantum Chromodynamics as a predictive calculational framework for nuclear physics. A survey of the current techniques that are used to extract low-energy hadronic scattering amplitudes and interactions is followed by a review of recent two-body and few-body calculations by the NPLQCD collaboration and others. An outline of the nuclear physics that is expected to be accomplished with Lattice QCD in the next decade, along with estimates of the required computational resources, is presented.     

Baryon-Baryon interactions from lattice QCD

We report on new attempt to investigate baryon-baryon interactions in lattice QCD. From the Bethe-Salpeter (BS) wave function, we have successfully extracted the nucleon-nucleon (NN) potentials in quenched QCD simulations, which reproduce qualitative features of modern NN potentials. The method has been extended to obtain the tensor potential as well as the central potential and also applied to the hyperon-nucleon (YN) interactions, in both quenched and full QCD.     

Baryon-Baryon interactions from lattice QCD

We report on new attempt to investigate baryon-baryon interactions in lattice QCD.From the Bethe-Salpeter （BS） wave function,we have successfully extracted the nucleon-nucleon （NN） potentials in quenched QCD simulations,which reproduce qualitative features of modern NN potentials.The method has been extended to obtain the tensor potential as well as the central potential and also applied to the hyperonnucleon （YN） interactions,in both quenched and full QCD.     

Hadron interactions in lattice QCD

Progress on the potential method, recently proposed to investigate hadron interactions in lattice QCD, is reviewed. The strategy to extract the potential in lattice QCD is explained in detail. The method is applied to extract NN potentials, hyperon potentials and the meson–baryon potentials. A theoretical investigation is made to understand the origin of the repulsive core using the operator product expansion. Some recent extensions of the method are also discussed.     

Nuclear force from lattice QCD

The nucleon-nucleon (NN) potential is studied by lattice QCD simulations in the quenched approximation, using the plaquette gauge action and the Wilson quark action on a 32(4) [approximately (4.4 fm)(4)] lattice. A NN potential V(NN)(r) is defined from the equal-time Bethe-Salpeter amplitude with a local interpolating operator for the nucleon. By studying the NN interaction in the (1)S(0) and (3)S(1) channels, we show that the central part of V(NN)(r) has a strong repulsive core of a few hundred MeV at short distances (r approximately < 0.5 fm) surrounded by an attractive well at medium and long distances. These features are consistent with the known phenomenological features of the nuclear force.     

Hadron spectroscopy in lattice QCD

A Monte Carlo computation of meson and hadron spectroscopy within lattice QCD is made. We give a detailed discussion of the statistical and systematic errors of the results and analyze the present limitations of our approach. The results are in agreement with the observed spectrum. We also estimate the values of up, down and strange quark masses.     

Recent developments in lattice QCD

I review the current status of several lattice QCD results. I concentrate on new analytical developments and on numerical results relevant to phenomenology.     

Hadron spectroscopy from lattice QCD

I present recent developments in the lattice QCD calculations of the light hadron spectrum. Emphasis is placed on the failure of the quenched approximation in reproducing the observed spectrum and indications that the discrepancy is reduced by introducing two flavors of light dynamical quarks.     

Nucleon structure from lattice QCD

The aim of these lectures will be to provide an introductory overview of the concepts needed to compute hadronic matrix elements on the lattice from which moments of Generalised Parton Distributions (GPDs) are extracted and to highlight the contributions that current lattice calculations are making to this exciting field of research. Interesting related topics that will be covered include recent work on the nucleon electromagnetic form factors and moments of parton distribution functions, including the nucleon's axial coupling constant, g_A, and the average fraction of the nucleon's momentum carried by the quarks, 〈 x_q〉.     

Chiral symmetry and lattice QCD

Four lectures about chiral symmetry and dynamical fermions in QCD. 1) Chiral symmetry in continuum QCD with an eye toward lattice simulations. 2) Lattice fermions with exact chiral symmetry: staggered fermions, fermions in five dimensions, chiral fermions in four dimensions. 3) A typical lattice simulation from beginning to end: the simulation algorithm, designing observables to measure some desired quantity, analyzing the data. 4) Recent lattice results relevant to chiral symmetry: a mini-review.     

Hadron wave functions in lattice QCD

Coulomb gauge quark-antiquark wave functions for the pion and the rho are calculated in the valence approximation on a lattice 8³ × 16. We use gauge group SU(2) at β of 2.431 corresponding to an inverse lattice spacing of 1100 ± 100 MeV. The wave functions fall off significantly over the size of the box, are rotationally invariant except at the box's boundary, and are nearly independent of the lagrangian quark mass.