Perturbative Renormalizability Research Articles

The surface counter-terms of the ϕ44 theory on the half space R+×R3

In a previous work, we established perturbative renormalizability to all orders of the massive ϕ44-theory on a half-space also called the semi-infinite massive ϕ44-theory. Five counter-terms which are functions depending on the position in the space, were needed to make the theory finite. The aim of the present paper is to establish that for a particular choice of the renormalization conditions the effective action consists of a part which is independent of the boundary conditions (Dirichlet, Neumann and Robin) plus a boundary term in the case of the Robin and Neumann boundary conditions. The key idea of our method is the decomposition of the correlators into a bulk part, which is defined as the scalar field model on the full space R4 with a quartic interaction restricted to the half-space, plus a remainder which we call “the surface part.” We analyse this surface part and establish perturbatively that the ϕ44 theory in R+×R3 is made finite by adding the bulk counter-terms and two additional counter-terms to the bare interaction in the case of Robin and Neumann boundary conditions. These surface counter-terms are position independent and are proportional to ∫Sϕ2 and ∫Sϕ∂nϕ. For Dirichlet boundary conditions, we prove that no surface counter-terms are needed and the bulk counter-terms are sufficient to renormalize the connected amputated (Dirichlet) Schwinger functions. A key technical novelty as compared to our previous work is a proof that the power counting of the surface part of the correlators is better by one scaling dimension than their bulk counterparts.

DeWitt wave function in Hořava-Lifshitz cosmology with tensor perturbation

We present a well-tempered DeWitt wave function, which vanishes at the classical big-bang singularity, in Hořava-Lifshitz (HL) cosmology with tensor perturbation, both analytically and numerically. In general relativity, the DeWitt wave function is ill-behaved once the tensor perturbation is taken into account. This is essential because the amplitude of the perturbation diverges at the singularity and the perturbative expansion completely breaks down. On the other hand, in HL gravity it is known that the higher dimensional operators required by the perturbative renormalizability render the tensor perturbation scale-invariant and regular all the way up to the singularity. In this paper we analytically show that in d+1 dimensional HL gravity, the DeWitt wave function for tensor perturbation is indeed well-defined around the classical big-bang singularity. Also, we numerically demonstrate the well-behaved DeWitt wave function for tensor perturbation from the singularity to the finite size of the Universe.

Nonperturbative renormalization of the lattice Sommerfield vector model

The lattice Sommerfield model, describing a massive vector gauge field coupled to a light fermion in 2d, is an ideal candidate to verify perturbative conclusions. In contrast with continuum exact solutions, we prove that there is no infinite field renormalization, implying the reduction of the degree of the ultraviolet divergence, and that anomalies are non renormalized. Such features are the counterpart of analogue properties at the basis of the Standard model perturbative renormalizability. The results are non-perturbative, in the sense that the averages of gauge invariant observables are expressed in terms of convergent expansions uniformly in the lattice and volume.

Derivation of spontaneously broken gauge symmetry from the consistency of effective field theory I: Massive vector bosons coupled to a scalar field

We revisit the problem of deriving local gauge invariance with spontaneous symmetry breaking in the context of an effective field theory. Previous derivations were based on the condition of tree-order unitarity. However, the modern point of view considers the Standard Model as the leading order approximation to an effective field theory. As tree-order unitarity is in any case violated by higher-order terms in an effective field theory, it is instructive to investigate a formalism which can be also applied to analyze higher-order interactions. In the current work we consider an effective field theory of massive vector bosons interacting with a massive scalar field. We impose the conditions of generating the right number of constraints for systems with spin-one particles and perturbative renormalizability as well as the separation of scales at one-loop order. We find that the above conditions impose severe restrictions on the coupling constants of the interaction terms. Except for the strengths of the self-interactions of the scalar field, that can not be determined at this order from the analysis of three- and four-point functions, we recover the gauge-invariant Lagrangian with spontaneous symmetry breaking taken in the unitary gauge as the leading order approximation to an effective field theory. We also outline the additional work that is required to finish this program.

Noncommutative Jackiw-Pi model: One-loop renormalization

In this paper, we study the quantum behavior of the noncommutative Jackiw-Pi model. After establishing the Becchi-Rouet-Store-Tyutin (BRST) invariant action, the perturbative renormalizability is discussed, allowing us to introduce the renormalized mass and gauge coupling. We then proceed to compute the one-loop correction to the basic 1PI functions, necessary to determine the renormalized parameters (mass and charge), next we discuss the physical behaviour of these parameters.

Renormalization of SU(2) Yang–Mills theory with flow equations

We give a proof of perturbative renormalizability of SU(2) Yang–Mills theory in four-dimensional Euclidean space which is based on the flow equations of the renormalization group. The main motivation is to present a proof which does not make appear mathematically undefined objects (as, for example, dimensionally regularized generating functionals), which permits to parametrize the theory in terms of physical renormalization conditions, and which allows to control the singularities of the correlation functions of the theory in the infrared domain. Thus a large part of the proof is dedicated to bounds on massless correlation functions.

Renormalization of a tensorial field theory on the homogeneous space SU(2)/U(1)

We study the renormalization of a general field theory on the homogeneous space (SU(2)/ with tensorial interaction and gauge invariance under the diagonal action of SU(2). We derive the power counting for arbitrary d. For the case d = 4, we prove perturbative renormalizability to all orders via multi-scale analysis, study both the renormalized and effective perturbation series, and establish the asymptotic freedom of the model. We also outline a general power counting for the homogeneous space , of direct interest for quantum gravity models in arbitrary dimension, and point out the obstructions to the direct generalization of our results to these cases.

Renormalization of Hořava gravity

We prove perturbative renormalizability of projectable Ho\ifmmode \check{r}\else \v{r}\fi{}ava gravity. The key element of the argument is the choice of a gauge which ensures the correct anisotropic scaling of the propagators and their uniform falloff at large frequencies and momenta. This guarantees that the counterterms required to absorb the loop divergences are local and marginal or relevant with respect to the anisotropic scaling. Gauge invariance of the counterterms is achieved by making use of the background-covariant formalism. We also comment on the difficulties of this approach when addressing the renormalizability of the nonprojectable model.

Interaction of the vector-meson octet with the baryon octet in effective field theory

We analyze the constraint structure of the interaction of vector mesons with baryons using the classical Dirac constraint analysis. We show that the standard interaction in terms of two independent SU(3) structures is consistent at the classical level. We then require the self-consistency condition of the interacting system in terms of perturbative renormalizability to obtain relations for the renormalized coupling constants at the one-loop level. As a result we find a universal interaction with one coupling constant which is the same as in the massive Yang-Mills Lagrangian of the vector-meson sector.

Constraint Analysis for the Interaction of the Vector-Meson Octet with the Baryon Octet

We describe a constraint analysis for the interaction of the vector-meson octet with the baryon octet. Applying Dirac's Hamiltonian method, we verify that the standard interaction in terms of two independent SU(3) structures is consistent at the classical level. We argue how the requirement of self consistency with respect to perturbative renormalizability may lead to relations among the renormalized coupling constants of the system.

Asymptotic safety on the lattice: The nonlinear [formula omitted] sigma model

We study the non-perturbative renormalization group flow of the nonlinear O(N) sigma model in two and three spacetime dimensions using a scheme that combines an effective local Hybrid Monte Carlo update routine, blockspin transformations and a Monte Carlo demon method. In two dimensions our results verify perturbative renormalizability. In three dimensions, we determine the flow diagram of the theory for various N and different truncations and find a non-trivial fixed point, which indicates non-perturbative renormalizability. It is related to the well-studied phase transition of the O(N) universality class and characterizes the continuum physics of the model. We compare the obtained renormalization group flows with recent investigations by means of the Functional Renormalization Group.

ON RENORMALIZABILITY OF THE EFFECTIVE FIELD THEORY OF MASSIVE YANG–MILLS FIELDS

Effective field theory (EFT) of massive Yang–Mills fields interacting with fermions is considered. Perturbative renormalizability in the framework of EFT is shown. It is argued that the limit of vanishing vector boson mass leads to massless gauge EFT. Possible relevance for the solution to the strong CP problem is discussed.

Perturbative renormalizability of chiral two-pion exchange in nucleon-nucleon scattering:PandDwaves

We study the perturbative renormalizability of chiral two pion exchange in nucleon-nucleon scattering for p- and d-waves within the effective field theory approach. The one pion exchange potential is fully iterated at the leading order in the expansion, a choice generating a consistent and well-defined power counting that we explore in detail. The results show that perturbative chiral two pion exchange reproduces the data up to a center-of-mass momentum of k_cm ~300 MeV at NNLO and that the effective field theory expansion convergences up to k_cm ~ 350 MeV.

Perturbative renormalizability of chiral two-pion exchange in nucleon-nucleon scattering

We study the perturbative renormalizability of chiral two-pion exchange for singlet and triplet channels within effective field theory, provided that the one-pion exchange piece of the interaction has been fully iterated. We determine the number of counterterms/subtractions needed to obtain finite results when the cutoff is removed, resulting in three counterterms for the singlet channel and six for the triplet. The results show that perturbative chiral two-pion exchange reproduce the data up to a center-of-mass momentum of $k~200--300$ MeV in the singlet channel and $k~300--400$ MeV in the triplet.

PATH INTEGRAL QUANTIZATION FOR MASSIVE VECTOR BOSONS

A parity-conserving and Lorentz-invariant effective field theory of self-interacting massive vector fields is considered. For the interaction terms with dimensionless coupling constants the canonical quantization is performed. It is shown that the self-consistency condition of this system with the second-class constraints in combination with the perturbative renormalizability leads to an SU(2) Yang–Mills theory with an additional mass term.

Conformal sector of quantum Einstein gravity in the local potential approximation: Non-Gaussian fixed point and a phase of unbroken diffeomorphism invariance

We explore the nonperturbative renormalization group flow of quantum Einstein gravity (QEG) on an infinite dimensional theory space. We consider ``conformally reduced'' gravity where only fluctuations of the conformal factor are quantized and employ the local potential approximation for its effective average action. The requirement of ``background independence'' in quantum gravity entails a partial differential equation governing the scale dependence of the potential for the conformal factor which differs significantly from that of a scalar matter field. In the infinite dimensional space of potential functions we find a Gaussian as well as a non-Gaussian fixed point which provides further evidence for the viability of the asymptotic safety scenario. The analog of the invariant cubic in the curvature which spoils perturbative renormalizability is seen to be unproblematic for the asymptotic safety of the conformally reduced theory. The scaling fields and dimensions of both fixed points are obtained explicitly and possible implications for the predictivity of the theory are discussed. Spacetime manifolds with ${R}^{d}$ as well as ${S}^{d}$ topology are considered. Solving the flow equation for the potential numerically we obtain examples of renormalization group trajectories inside the ultraviolet critical surface of the non-Gaussian fixed point. The quantum theories based upon some of them show a phase transition from the familiar (low energy) phase of gravity with spontaneously broken diffeomorphism invariance to a new phase of unbroken diffeomorphism invariance; the latter phase is characterized by a vanishing expectation value of the metric.

Erratum

This paper proves that it is possible to build a Lagrangian for quantum electrodynamics which makes it explicit that the photon mass is eventually set to zero in the physical part on observational ground. Gauge independence is achieved upon considering the joint effect of gauge-averaging term and ghost fields. It remains possible to obtain a counterterm Lagrangian where the only non-gauge-invariant term is proportional to the squared divergence of the potential, while the photon propagator in momentum space falls off like 1 over (k-squared) at large k, which indeed agrees with perturbative renormalizability. The resulting radiative corrections to the Coulomb potential in QED are also shown to be gauge-independent. The experience acquired with quantum electrodynamics is used to investigate properties and problems of the extension of such ideas to non-Abelian gauge theories.

Perturbative Renormalization by Flow Equations

In this article a self-contained exposition of proving perturbative renormalizability of a quantum field theory based on an adaption of Wilson's differential renormalization group equation to perturbation theory is given. The topics treated include the spontaneously broken SU(2) Yang–Mills theory. Although mainly a coherent but selective review, the article contains also some simplifications and extensions with respect to the literature.

MASSIVE YANG–MILLS THEORY IN ABELIAN GAUGES

We prove the perturbative renormalizability of pure SU(2) Yang–Mills theory in the Abelian gauge supplemented with mass terms. Whereas mass terms for the gauge fields charged under the diagonal U(1) allow us to preserve the standard form of the Slavnov–Taylor identities (but with modified BRST variations), mass terms for the diagonal gauge fields require the study of modified Slavnov–Taylor identities. We comment on the renormalization group equations, which describe the variation of the effective action with the different masses. Finite renormalized masses for the charged gauge fields, in the limit of vanishing bare mass terms, are possible provided a certain combination of wave function renormalization constants vanishes sufficiently rapidly in the infrared limit.

Bootstrapping perturbative perfect actions

We study the exact renormalization group of the four dimensional phi4 theory perturbatively. We reformulate the differential renormalization group equations as integral equations that define the continuum limit of the theory directly with no need for a bare theory. We show how the self-consistency of the integral equations leads to the determination of the interaction vertices in the continuum limit. The inductive proof of the existence of a solution to the integral equations amounts to a proof of perturbative renormalizability, and it consists of nothing more than counting the scale dimensions of the interaction vertices. Universality is discussed within a context of the exact renormalization group.