Anomalous Dimension Research Articles

Constraints for twist-two alien operators in QCD

Abstract Parton evolution equations in QCD are controlled by the anomalous dimensions of gauge-invariant twist-two spin-N quark and gluon operators. Under renormalization, these mix with gauge-variant operators of the same quantum numbers, referred to as alien operators. Our work addresses the systematic study of these alien operators at arbitrary spin N, using generalized BRST symmetry relations to derive their couplings and Feynman rules at all values of N. We observe how the all-N structure of the generalized (anti-)BRST constraints relates the couplings of alien operators with n + 1 gluons to those with n gluons. Realizing a bootstrap, we present all one-loop results necessary for performing the operator renormalization up to four loops in QCD.

Impurities with a cusp: general theory and 3d Ising

In CFTs, the partition function of a line defect with a cusp depends logarithmically on the size of the line with an angle-dependent coefficient: the cusp anomalous dimension. In the first part of this work, we study the general properties of the cusp anomalous dimension. We relate the small cusp angle limit to the effective field theory of defect fusion, making predictions for the first couple of terms in the expansion. Using a concavity property of the cusp anomalous dimension we argue that the Casimir energy between a line defect and its orientation reversal is always negative (“opposites attract”). We use these results to determine the fusion algebra of Wilson lines in N\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 4 SYM as well as pinning field defects in the Wilson-Fisher fixed points. In the second part of the paper we obtain nonperturbative numerical results for the cusp anomalous dimension of pinning field defects in the Ising model in d = 3, using the recently developed fuzzy-sphere regularization. We also compute the pinning field cusp anomalous dimension in the O(N) model at one-loop in the ε-expansion. Our results are in agreement with the general theory developed in the first part of the work, and we make several predictions for impurities in magnets.

Non-planar corrections in ABJM theory from quantum M2 branes

The quantization of semiclassical strings in AdS spacetimes yields predictions for the strong-coupling behaviour of the scaling dimensions of the corresponding operators in the planar limit of the dual gauge theory. Finding non-planar corrections requires computing string loops (corresponding to torus and higher genus surfaces), which is a challenging task. It turns out that in the case of the Uk(N) × U−k(N) ABJM theory there is an alternative approach: one may semiclassically quantize M2 branes in AdS4 × S7/ℤk which are wrapped around the 11d circle of radius 1/k = λ/N . Such M2 branes are the M-theory generalization of the strings in AdS × CP3. In this work, we show that by expanding in large M2 brane tension T2 ~ kN\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\sqrt{kN} $$\\end{document} for fixed k, followed by an expansion in large k, we can predict the large λ asymptotics of the non-planar corrections to the dimensions of the dual ABJM operators. As a specific example, we consider the M2 brane configuration that generalizes the long folded string with large spin in AdS4, and compute the 1-loop correction to its energy. This calculation allows us to determine non-planar corrections to the universal scaling function or cusp anomalous dimension. We extend our analysis to the semiclassical M2 branes that generalize the “short” and “long” circular strings with two equal angular momenta in CP3. The “short” M2 brane corresponds to a dual operator whose dimension at strong coupling scales as ∆ ∼ λ1/4 + …, and we derive the leading non-planar correction to it.

Advancing the understanding of energy-energy correlators in heavy-ion collisions

We investigate the collinear limit of the energy-energy correlator (EEC) in a heavy-ion context. First, we revisit the leading-logarithmic (LL) resummation of this observable in vacuum following a diagrammatic approach. We argue that this route allows to naturally incorporate medium-induced effects into the all-orders structure systematically. As an example, we show how the phase-space constraints imposed by the static medium on vacuum-like emissions can be incorporated into the LL result by modifying the anomalous dimensions. On the fixed-order side, we calculate the O\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{O} $$\\end{document}(αs) expansion of the in-medium EEC for a γ → qq¯\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ q\\overline{q} $$\\end{document} splitting with arbitrary kinematics including, for the first time, subleading colour corrections. When comparing this result to previously used approximations in the literature, we find up to O\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{O} $$\\end{document}(1) deviations in the regime of interest for jet quenching signatures. Energy loss effects are also quantified and further suppress the EEC at large angles. These semi-analytic studies are complemented with a phenomenological study using the jet quenching Monte Carlo JetMed. Finally, we argue that the imprint of medium-induced effects in energy-energy correlators can be enhanced by using an alternative definition that takes as input Lund primary declusterings instead of particles.

Flavor factorization at two-loops

Recently, a factorization theorem was proposed for partonic flavor evolution as defined by the net flavor of the Winner-Take-All axis of a jet. We validate the factorization theorem through explicit calculation at two-loop order, and in the process extract all anomalous dimensions and renormalization factors for any ultraviolet-to-infrared flavor transition at this order. These results can then be used to extract the renormalized hard function for flavored jet production at next-to-next-to-leading order for any process of interest.

Completing the one-loop νSMEFT renormalization group evolution

In this work we consider the Standard Model Effective Field Theory extended with right-handed neutrinos, the νSMEFT, and calculate the full set of one-loop anomalous dimensions that are proportional to Yukawa couplings. These contributions are particularly relevant when symmetry-protected low scale seesaw models are embeded in the SMEFT, since large neutrino Yukawa couplings are expected. By combining our results with the already available gauge anomalous dimensions, we provide the complete set of one-loop renormalization group evolution equations for the dimension six νSMEFT. As a possible phenomenological implication of our results, we discuss the sensitivity of lepton flavor-violating observables to νSMEFT operators, focusing on the more sensitive μ → e transitions.

Hunting 3d N\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 1 SQED in the ϵ-expansion

It was recently shown that 3dN\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 1 supersymmetric Wess-Zumino models can be studied in the ϵ-expansion by analytically continuing the number of fermionic degrees of freedom to be half-integer. In this work we study the extension of this strategy to gauge theories. We consider U(1) gauge theories with Ng neutral Majorana fermions χa, Nf charge-1 bosons ϕi and Nf × Ng charge-1 Dirac fermions ψia in the d = 4 − 2ϵ expansion. Analytically continuing to Ng = 12\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\frac{1}{2} $$\\end{document} schematically matches the Lagrangian and matter content of 3dN\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 1 SQED, and we check whether this match can be made rigorous. We compute anomalous dimensions of χa up to two loops and of meson operators up to one loop at the fixed points, and compare to expectations from SUSY. While we find obstructions to SUSY at small Nf, at large Nf the observables approach the expected values at a SUSY fixed point. This may allow for checks of 3dN\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 1 IR dualities between gauge theories.

Anomalous and linear holographic hard wall models for light unflavored mesons

In this work we consider anomalous and linear holographic hard wall (HW) models for light unflavored mesons inspired by the AdS/CFT correspondence. The anomalous dimensions depend on the logarithm of the spin S of the meson state and come from a semiclassical analysis of gauge/string duality. The anomalous HW model produces very good masses and good Regge trajectories for mesons compared with PDG data. Inspired by this anomalous HW model we also propose a phenomenological modification of the dimension of the boundary operators such that the model produces asymptotic linear Regge trajectories. Both anomalous HW models considered here present mass percentage deviations of less than 3%, when compared with PDG data. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Integrating the full four-loop negative geometries and all-loop ladder-type negative geometries in ABJM theory

The decomposition of the four-point ABJM amplituhedron into negative geometries produces compact integrands of logarithmic of amplitudes such that the infrared divergence only comes from the last loop integration, from which we can compute the cusp anomalous dimension of the ABJM theory. In this note, we integrate L – 1 loop momenta of the L-loop negative geometries for all four-loop negative geometries and a special class of all-loop ladder-type negative geometries by a method based on Mellin transformation, and from these finite quantities we extract the corresponding contribution to the cusp anomalous dimension. We find that the infrared divergence of a box-type negative geometry at L = 4 is weaker than other negative geometries, then only tree-type negative geometries contribute to the cusp anomalous dimension at L = 4. For the all-loop ladder-type negative geometries, we prove and conjecture some recursive structures as integral equations in Mellin space and find that they cannot contribute zeta values like ζ3, ζ5 to the cusp anomalous dimension.

Gauge-invariant renormalization of four-quark operators

We study the renormalization of four-quark operators in one-loop perturbation theory. We employ a coordinate-space gauge-invariant renormalization scheme (GIRS), which can be advantageous compared to other schemes, especially in nonperturbative lattice investigations. From our perturbative calculations, we extract the conversion factors between GIRS and the modified minimal subtraction scheme (MS¯) at the next-to-leading order. As a by-product, we also obtain the relevant anomalous dimensions in the GIRS scheme. A formidable issue in the study of the four-quark operators is that operators with different Dirac matrices mix among themselves upon renormalization. We focus on both parity-conserving and parity-violating four-quark operators, which change flavor numbers by two units (ΔF=2). The extraction of the conversion factors entails the calculation of two-point Green’s functions involving products of two four-quark operators, as well as three-point Green’s functions with one four-quark and two bilinear operators. The significance of our results lies in their potential to refine our understanding of QCD phenomena, offering insights into the precision of Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) matrix elements and shedding light on the nonperturbative treatment of complex mixing patterns associated with four-quark operators. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Renormalization flow of nonlinear electrodynamics

We study the renormalization flow of generic actions that depend on the invariants of the field strength tensor of an Abelian gauge field. While the Maxwell action defines a Gaussian fixed point, we search for further non-Gaussian fixed points or rather fixed functions, i.e., globally existing Lagrangians of the invariants. Using standard small-field expansion techniques for the resulting functional flow equation, a large number of fixed points is obtained, which—in analogy to recent findings for a shift-symmetric scalar field—we consider as approximation artifacts. For the construction of a globally existing fixed function, we pay attention to the use of proper initial conditions. Parametrizing the latter by the photon anomalous dimension, both the coefficients of the weak-field expansion are fully determined and those of the large-field expansion can be matched such that a global fixed function can be constructed for magnetic fields. The anomalous dimension also governs the strong-field limit. Our results provide evidence for the existence of a continuum of non-Gaussian fixed points parametrized by a small positive anomalous dimension below a critical value. We discuss the implications of this result within various scenarios with and without additional matter. For the strong-field limit of the 1PI QED effective action, where the anomalous dimension is determined by electronic fluctuations, our result suggests the existence of a singularity free strong-field limit, circumventing the standard conclusions connected to the perturbative Landau pole. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Nature of Topological Phase Transition of Kitaev Quantum Spin Liquids.

We investigate the nature of the topological quantum phase transition between the gapless and gapped Kitaev quantum spin liquid phases away from the exactly solvable point. The transition is driven by anisotropy of the Kitaev couplings. At the critical point, the two Dirac points of the gapless Majorana modes merge, resulting in the formation of a semi-Dirac point with quadratic and linear band touching directions. We derive an effective Gross-Neveu-Yukawa-type field theory that describes the topological phase transition in the presence of additional magnetic interactions. We obtain the infrared scaling form of the propagator of the dynamical Ising order parameter field and perform a renormalization-group analysis. The universality of the transition is found to be different from that of symmetry-breaking phase transitions of semi-Dirac electrons. However, as in the electronic case, the Majorana fermions acquire an anomalous dimension, indicative of the breakdown of the fractionalized quasiparticle description.

Threshold effects on the massless neutrino in the canonical seesaw mechanism

In this work, we revisit the one-loop renormalization group equations (RGEs) among non-degenerate seesaw scales, i.e., threshold effects in the canonical seesaw mechanism, which have been obtained for more than two decades. Different from the previous work only focusing on the Weinberg operator, we derive the complete one-loop RGEs of all three dimension-five operators in the Standard Model effective field theory with right-handed neutrinos (νSMEFT) and apply them to threshold effects in the canonical seesaw mechanism. We find some contributions from the Weinberg operator to its Wilson coefficient, the neutrino Yukawa coupling matrix, and the Higgs quartic coupling absent in the previous calculations. Based on the updated one-loop RGEs, we derive the RGE of the effective neutrino mass matrix’s determinant without any approximation. Then, for the first time, we provide a strict proof that the one-loop RG running effects among non-degenerate seesaw scales can not generate a non-zero mass for the initial massless neutrino in the minimal type-I seesaw mechanism or in the canonical one with a rank-degenerate neutrino Yukawa coupling matrix. One has to include two- or higher-loop corrections to achieve a non-zero mass for the massless neutrino.

Scaling properties of particle density fluctuations at LHC energies

The availability of high-multiplicity events at LHC energies provides a unique opportunity to examine the nature of phase-transition (PT) in heavy-ion collisions. Within the framework of HYDJET++ model, a systematic study of particle density fluctuations in narrow phase-space bins in Pb-Pb collisions at and 5.02 TeV energies is performed using the method of scaled factorial moments (SFM). The findings reveal the presence of intermittency in the 2-dimensional (2D) phase space distribution of charged particles at the LHC energies. The anomalous fractal dimensions, d q , are observed to increase with the order of the moments q, suggesting the multifractal nature of the charged particle production. The parameter λ q is found to exhibit a monotonically decreasing trend with the order of the moments but with no clear minima in λ q values. Furthermore, the value of the critical exponent is estimated and compared with those predicted by other models reported at RHIC and LHC energies. The value of the critical exponent, ν, obtained in the present study, shows significant departure from the value ∼1.304, as expected for the Ginzberg-Landau (GL) type second-order PT but exhibits a good level of agreement with the results obtained by other models at LHC energies.

Conformal BK equation at QCD Wilson-Fisher point

High-energy scattering in pQCD in the Regge limit is described by the evolution of Wilson lines governed by the BK equation [1, 2]. In the leading order, the BK equation is conformally invariant and the eigenfunctions of the linearized BFKL equation are powers. It is a common belief that at d ≠ 4 the BFKL equation is useless since unlike d = 4 case it cannot be solved by usual methods. However, we demonstrate that at critical Wilson-Fisher point of QCD the relevant part of NLO BK restores the conformal invariance so the solutions are again powers. As a check of our approach to high-energy amplitudes at the Wilson-Fisher point, we calculate the anomalous dimensions of twist-2 light-ray operators in the Regge limit j → 1.

Three-loop evolution kernel for transversity operator

We calculate quantum corrections to the symmetry generators for the transversity operators in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) in the two-loop approximation. Using this result, we obtain the evolution kernel for the corresponding operators at three loops. The explicit expression for the anomalous dimension matrix in the Gegenbauer basis is given for the first few operators.

Algebraic structure of the renormalization group in the renormalizable QFT theories

In this paper, we consider the group formed by finite renormalizations as an infinite-dimensional Lie group. It is demonstrated that for the finite renormalization of the gauge coupling constant, its generators [Formula: see text] with [Formula: see text] satisfy the commutation relations of the Witt algebra and, therefore, form its subalgebra. The commutation relations are also written for the more general case when finite renormalizations are made for both the coupling constant and matter fields. We also construct the generator of the Abelian subgroup corresponding to the changes of the renormalization scale. The explicit expressions for the renormalization group generators are written in the case when they act on the [Formula: see text]-function and the anomalous dimension. It is explained how the finite changes of these functions under the finite renormalizations can be obtained with the help of the exponential map.

Gluonic evanescent operators: negative-norm states and complex anomalous dimensions

In this paper, we build on our previous work to further investigate the role of evanescent operators in gauge theories, with a particular focus on their contribution to violations of unitarity. We develop an efficient method for calculating the norms of gauge-invariant operators in Yang-Mills (YM) theory by employing on-shell form factors. Our analysis, applicable to general spacetime dimensions, reveals the existence of negative-norm states among evanescent operators. We also explore the one-loop anomalous dimensions of these operators and find complex anomalous dimensions. We broaden our analysis by considering YM theory coupled with scalar fields and we observe similar patterns of non-unitarity. The presence of negative-norm states and complex anomalous dimensions across these analyses provides compelling evidence that general gauge theories are non-unitary in non-integer spacetime dimensions.

Anomalous dimensions via on-shell methods: Operator mixing and leading mass effects

We elaborate on the application of on shell and unitarity-based methods for evaluating renormalization group coefficients, and generalize this framework to account for the mixing of operators with different dimensions and leading mass effects. We derive a master formula for anomalous dimensions stemming from the general structure of operator mixings, up to two-loop order, and show how the Higgs low-energy theorem can be exploited to include leading mass effects. A few applications on the renormalization properties of popular effective field theories showcase the strength of the proposed approach, which drastically reduces the complexity of standard loop calculations. Our results provide a powerful tool to interpret experimental measurements of low-energy observables, such as flavor violating processes or electric and magnetic dipole moments, as induced by new physics emerging above the electroweak scale. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Interpolating gauge-fixing for Yang–Mills–Chern–Simons theory in D=3\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$D=3$$\\end{document}

The Yang–Mills–Chern–Simons theory in three-dimensional Minkowski space-time is studied in a gauge-fixing scheme which interpolates between the covariant gauge and light-cone gauge, the interpolating gauge-fixing. The ultraviolet finiteness of the theory is proved via the Becchi–Rouet–Stora (BRS) algebraic renormalization procedure, which allows us to demonstrate the vanishing of all β\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$\\beta $$\\end{document}-functions and all anomalous dimensions to all orders in perturbation theory.