One-loop Effective Action Research Articles

Vacuum polarization of the quantized massive scalar field in the global monopole spacetime: The renormalized quantum stress energy tensor

This paper is devoted to the construction of the renormalized quantum stress energy tensor $\left<T_{\mu}^{\nu}\right>_{ren}$ for a massive scalar field with arbitrary coupling to the gravitational field of a pointlike global monopole, using the Schwinger-DeWitt approximation, up to second order in the inverse mass $\mu$ of the field. The given stress energy tensor is constructed by functional differentiation with respect to the metric tensor of the one-loop effective action of sufficiently massive scalar field, such that the Compton length of the quantum field is much less than the characteristic radius of the curvature of the background geometry. The results are obtained for a general curvature coupling parameter $\xi$, and specified to the more physical cases of minimal and conformal coupling, showing that in this specific cases, the quantum massive scalar field in the global monopole spacetime violates all the pointwise energy conditions.

Abelian decomposition and Weyl symmetric effective action of SU(3) QCD

We show how to calculate the effective potential of SU(3) QCD which tells that the true minimum is given by the monopole condensation. To do this we make the gauge independent Weyl symmetric Abelian decomposition of the SU(3) QCD which decomposes the gluons to the color neutral neurons and the colored chromons. In the perturbative regime this decomposes the Feynman diagram in such a way that the conservation of color is explicit. Moreover, this shows the existence of two gluon jets, the neuron jet and chromon jet, which can be verified by experiment. In the non-perturbative regime, the decomposition puts QCD to the background field formalism and reduces the non-Abelian gauge symmetry to a discrete color reflection symmetry, and provides us an ideal platform to calculate the one-loop effective action of QCD. Integrating out the chromons from the Weyl symmetric Abelian decomposition of QCD gauge invariantly imposing the color reflection invariance, we obtain the SU(3) QCD effective potential which generates the stable monopole condensation and the mass gap. We discuss the physical implications of our result, in particular the possible existence of the vacuum fluctuation mode of the monopole condensation in QCD.

Higher order derivative operators as quantum corrections

In this paper we propose a non-minimal, and ghost free, coupling between the gauge field and the fermionic one from which we obtain, perturbatively, terms with higher order derivatives as quantum corrections to the photon effective action in the low energy regime. We calculate the one-loop effective action of the photon field and show that, in addition to the Euler-Heisenberg terms, the well known Lee-Wick term, ∼Fμν∂α∂αFμν, arises in low energy regime as a quantum correction from the model. We also obtain the electron self energy in leading order.

Calculating non-perturbative quantities through the world-line formalism

We present two applications of the world-line formalism to the calculation of non-perturbative quantities in QCD. The first quantity is the free energy of the gluon plasma in the high-temperature limit; the second quantity is the pair-production rate in the chromo-electric field of a flux tube. In the first case, where effects of spatial confinement in the dimensionally-reduced 3D Yang-Mills theory are primarily important, we calculate the free-energy density of a gluon propagating in the stochastic background fields through a suitable parametrization of the area-and the perimeter laws of the Wilson loop, which enters the corresponding one-loop effective action. In this way, we find that the order of the leading correction to the Stefan-Boltzmann free energy changes from for N ∼ 1 to for N ≫ 1, where λ is the finite-temperature’t Hooft coupling, and N is the number of colors. In the second case, we find that, in the London limit of the dual superconductor, the Schwinger pair-production rate, ∼ e−const·m2, goes over to e−const·m. Given that the flux-tube field is static, we find such a conversion of the Gaussian distribution into an exponential one, remarkable.

A worldline approach to colored particles

Relativistic particle actions are a useful tool to describe quantum field theory effective actions using a string-inspired first-quantized approach. Here we describe how to employ suitable particle actions in the computation of the scalar contribution to the one-loop gluon effective action. We use the well-known method of introducing auxiliary variables that create the color degrees of freedom. In a path integral they implement automatically the path ordering needed to ensure gauge invariance. It is known that the color degrees of freedom introduced this way form a reducible representation of the gauge group. We describe a method of projecting onto the fundamental representation (or any other chosen irrep, if desired) of the gauge group. Previously, we have discussed the case of anticommuting auxiliary variables. Choosing them to be in the fundamental representation allows to obtain, without any extra effort, also the situation in which the color is given by any antisymmetric tensor product of the fundamental. Here, we describe the novel case of bosonic auxiliary variables. They can be used equivalently for creating the color charges in the fundamental representation. In addition one gets, as a byproduct, the cases where the particle can have the color sitting in any symmetric tensor product of the fundamental. This is obtained by tuning to a different value a Chern Simons coupling, present in the model, which controls how the projection is achieved.

Generalized supergravity equations and generalized Fradkin-Tseytlin counterterm

The generalized Fradkin-Tseytlin counterterm for the (type I) Green-Schwarz superstring is determined for background fields satisfying the generalized supergravity equations (GSE). For this purpose, we revisit the derivation of the GSE based upon the requirement of kappa-symmetry of the superstring action. Lifting the constraint of vanishing bosonic torsion components, we are able to make contact to several different torsion constraints used in the literature. It is argued that a natural geometric interpretation of the GSE vector field that generalizes the dilaton is as the torsion vector, which can combine with the dilatino spinor into the torsion supervector. To find the counterterm, we use old results for the one-loop effective action of the heterotic sigma model. The counterterm is covariant and involves the worldsheet torsion for vanishing curvature, but cannot be constructed as a local functional in terms of the worldsheet metric. It is shown that the Weyl anomaly cancels without imposing any further constraints on the background fields. In the case of ordinary supergravity, it reduces to the Fradkin-Tseytlin counterterm modulo an additional constraint.

Quantum Fields without Wick Rotation

We discuss the calculation of one-loop effective actions in Lorentzian spacetimes, based on a very simple application of the method of steepest descent to the integral over the field. We show that for static spacetimes this procedure agrees with the analytic continuation of Euclidean calculations. We also discuss how to calculate the effective action by integrating a renormalization group equation. We show that the result is independent of arbitrary choices in the definition of the coarse-graining and we see again that the Lorentzian and Euclidean calculations agree. When applied to quantum gravity on static backgrounds, our procedure is equivalent to analytically continuing time and the integral over the conformal factor.

Curved spacetime effective field theory (cEFT) \u2014 construction with the heat kernel method

In the presented paper we tackle the problem of the effective field theory in curved spacetime (cEFT) construction. To this end, we propose to use the heat kernel method. After introducing the general formalism based on the well established formulas known from the application of the heat kernel method to deriving the one-loop effective action in curved spacetime, we tested it on selected problems. The discussed examples were chosen to serve as a check of validity of the derived formulas by comparing the obtained results to the known flat spacetime calculations. On the other hand, they allowed us to obtain new results concerning the influence of the gravity induced operators on the effective field theory without unnecessary calculational complications.

Radiative corrections in 2 + 1 dimensional supergravity

Supergravity in 2 + 1 dimensions has a set of first-class constraints that result in two bosonic and one fermionic gauge invariances. When one uses Faddeev–Popov quantization, these gauge invariances result in four fermionic scalar ghosts and two bosonic Majorana spinor ghosts. The BRST invariance of the effective Lagrangian is found. As an example of a radiative correction, we compute the phase of the one-loop effective action in the presence of a background spin connection, and show that it vanishes. This indicates that unlike a spinor coupled to a gauge field in 2 + 1 dimensions, there is no dynamical generation of a topological mass in this model. An additional example of how a BRST invariant effective action can arise in a gauge theory is provided in Appendix B where the BRST effective action for the classical Palatini action in 1 + 1 dimensions is examined.

String-inspired methods and the worldline formalism in curved space

.The worldline approach to Quantum Field Theory (QFT) allows to efficiently compute several quantities, such as one-loop effective actions, scattering amplitudes and anomalies, which are linked to particle path integrals on the circle. A helpful tool in the worldline formalism on the circle are string-inspired (SI) Feynman rules, which correspond to a specific way of factoring out a zero mode. In flat space this is known to generate no difficulties. In curved space, it was shown how to correctly achieve the zero mode factorization by applying BRST techniques to fix a shift symmetry. Using special coordinate systems, such as Riemann Normal Coordinates, implies the appearance of a non-linear map --originally introduced by Friedan-- which must be taken care of in order to obtain the correct results. In particular, employing SI Feynman rules, the map introduces further interactions in the worldline path integrals. In the present paper, we compute in closed form Friedan’s map for RNC coordinates in maximally symmetric spaces, and test the path integral model by computing trace anomalies. Our findings match known results.

Quantum effective action for degenerate vector field theories

We calculate the divergent part of the one-loop effective action in curved spacetime for a particular class of second-order vector field operators with a degenerate principal part. The principal symbol of these operators has the structure of a longitudinal projector. In this case, standard heat-kernel techniques are not directly applicable. We present a method which reduces the problem to a nondegenerate scalar operator for which standard heat-kernel techniques are available. Interestingly, this method leads to the identification of an effective metric structure in the longitudinal sector. The one-loop divergences are compactly expressed in terms of invariants constructed from this metric.

Gauge dependence of the one-loop divergences in 6D, [formula omitted] abelian theory

We study the gauge dependence of the one-loop effective action for the abelian 6D, N=(1,0) supersymmetric gauge theory formulated in harmonic superspace. We introduce the superfield ξ-gauge, construct the corresponding gauge superfield propagator, and calculate the one-loop two- and three-point Green functions with two external hypermultiplet legs. We demonstrate that in the general ξ-gauge the two-point Green function of the hypermultiplet is divergent, as opposed to the Feynman gauge ξ=1. The three-point Green function with two external hypermultiplet legs and one leg of the gauge superfield is also divergent. We verified that the Green functions considered satisfy the Ward identity formulated in N=(1,0) harmonic superspace and that their gauge dependence vanishes on shell. Using the result for the two- and three-point Green functions and arguments based on the gauge invariance, we present the complete divergent part of the one-loop effective action in the general ξ-gauge.

Nonperturbative one-loop effective action for QED with Yukawa couplings

We derive the one-loop effective action for scalar, pseudoscalar, and electromagnetic fields coupled to a Dirac fermion in an extension of QED with Yukawa couplings. Using the Schwinger proper-time formalism and zeta-function regularization, we calculate the full nonperturbative effective action to one loop in the constant background field approximation. Our result is nonperturbative in the external fields, and goes beyond existing results in the literature which treat only the first nontrivial order involving the pseudoscalar. The result has an even and odd part, which are related to the modulus and phase of the fermion functional determinant. The even contribution to the effective action involves the modulus of the effective Yukawa couplings and is invariant under global chiral transformations while the odd contribution is proportional to the angle between the scalar and pseudoscalar couplings. In different limits the effective action reduces either to the Euler–Heisenberg effective action or the Coleman–Weinberg potential. We also comment on the relationship between the odd part of the effective action and the chiral anomaly in QED.

Leading low-energy effective action in 6D, mathcal{N}=left(1,1right) SYM theory

We elaborate on the low-energy effective action of 6D, mathcal{N}=left(1,1right) supersymmetric Yang-Mills (SYM) theory in the mathcal{N}=left(1,0right) harmonic superspace formulation. The theory is described in terms of analytic mathcal{N}=left(1,0right) gauge superfield V++ and analytic ω-hypermultiplet, both in the adjoint representation of gauge group. The effective action is defined in the framework of the background superfield method ensuring the manifest gauge invariance along with manifest mathcal{N}=left(1,0right) supersymmetry. We calculate leading contribution to the one-loop effective action using the on-shell background superfields corresponding to the option when gauge group SU(N) is broken to SU(N − 1) × ϒ(1) ⊂ SU(N). In the bosonic sector the effective action involves the structure sim frac{F^2}{X^2} , where F4 is a monomial of the fourth degree in an abelian field strength FM N and X stands for the scalar fields from the ω-hypermultiplet. It is manifestly demonstrated that the expectation values of the hypermultiplet scalar fields play the role of a natural infrared cutoff.

Zeta-function regularization of holographic Wilson loops

Using $\zeta$-function regularization, we study the one-loop effective action of fundamental strings in $AdS_5\times S^5$ dual to the latitude $\frac{1}{4}$-BPS Wilson loop in $\mathcal{N}=4$ Super-Yang-Mills theory. To avoid certain ambiguities inherent to string theory on curved backgrounds we subtract the effective action of the holographic $\frac{1}{2}$-BPS Wilson loop. We find agreement with the expected field theory result at first order in the small latitude angle expansion but discrepancies at higher order.

Strong, random field behavior of the Euclidean Dirac propagator

The one-loop effective action of quantum electrodynamics in four dimensions is shown to be controlled by the Euclidean Dirac propagator $G$ in a background potential. After separating the photon self-energy and photon-photon scattering graphs from the effective action the remainder is known to be the logarithm of an entire function of the electric charge of order 4 under mild regularity assumptions on the potential. This input together with QED's lack of an ultrastable vacuum constrain the strong field behavior of $G$. It is shown that $G$ vanishes in the strong field limit. The relevance of this result to the decoupling of QED from the remainder of the electroweak model for large amplitude variations of the Maxwell field is discussed.

Toward precision holography in type IIA with Wilson loops

We study the one-loop effective action of certain classical type IIA string configurations in AdS4 × ℂℙ3. These configurations are dual to Wilson loops in the mathcal{N}=6 U(N)k × U(N)−k Chern-Simons theory coupled to matter whose expectation values are known via supersymmetric localization. We compute the one-loop effective actions using two methods: perturbative heat kernel techniques and full ζ-function regularization. We find that the result of the perturbative heat kernel method matches the field theory prediction at the appropriate order while the ζ-function approach seems to lead to a disagreement.

Extending the universal one-loop effective action by regularization scheme translating operators

We extend the universal one-loop effective action (UOLEA) by operators which translate between dimensional reduction (DRED) and dimensional regularization (DREG). These regularization scheme translating operators allow for an application of the UOLEA to supersymmetric high-scale models matched to non-supersymmetric effective theories. The operators are presented in a generic, model independent form, suitable for implementation into generic spectrum generators.

Gauged Yukawa model in curved spacetime

The Yukawa model in curved spacetime is considered. We consider a complex scalar field coupled to a $U(1)$ gauge field and also interacting with Dirac fields with a general Yukawa coupling. The local momentum space method is used to obtain the one-loop effective action and we adopt the gauge condition independent background field method introduced by Vilkovisky and DeWitt. The pole parts of the one-loop effective action that depend on the background scalar field, that we do not assume to be constant, are found and used to calculate the counterterms and to determine the relevant renormalization group functions. Terms in the effective action that involve the gradient terms in the scalar field as well as the effective potential are found in the case where the scalar field and Dirac fields are massless. We also discuss the anomaly that arises if the pseudoscalar mass term for the Dirac fermions is removed by a chiral transformation.

Unimodular quantum gravity and the cosmological constant

It is shown that the one-loop effective action of unimodular gravity is the same as that of ordinary gravity, restricted to unimodular metrics. The only difference is in the treatment of the global scale degree of freedom and of the cosmological term. A constant vacuum energy does not gravitate, addressing one aspect of the cosmological constant problem.