Finite temperature QCD phase transition and its scaling window from Wilson twisted mass fermions

We study the properties of finite temperature QCD using lattice simulations with Nf = 2 + 1 + 1 Wilson twisted mass fermions for pion masses from physical up to heavy quark regime. In particular, we investigate the scaling properties of the chiral phase transition close to the chiral limit. We found compatibility with O(4) universality class for pion masses up to physical and in the temperature range [120 : 300] MeV. We also discuss other alternatives, including mean field behaviour or Z2 scaling. We provide an estimation of the critical temperature in the chiral limit, T0 = 134−4+6 MeV, which is stable against various scaling scenarios.

The behaviors of the solutions of the quark gap equation in the NJL model with the self-consistent mean field approximation

In this paper, we use the self-consistent mean field approximation to study the Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) phase transition. In the self-consistent mean field approximation of the Nambu–Jona-Lasinio (NJL) model, a parameter [Formula: see text] is introduced, which reflects the weight of “direct” channel and the “exchange” channel and needs to be determined by experiments (as mentioned in a recent work [T. Zhao, W. Zheng, F. Wang, C.-M. Li, Y. Yan, Y.-F. Huang and H.-S. Zong, Phys. Rev. D 100, 043018 (2019)], the results with [Formula: see text] are in good agreement with astronomical observation data on the latest binary neutron star merging. This indicates that the contribution of “exchange” channel should be considered, and [Formula: see text] is a possible choice). By comparing the results with different parameter [Formula: see text]’s ([Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]), we study the influence of “exchange” channel on the behavior of the solutions of the quark gap equation and the critical point of chiral phase transition. Our results show that the second-order chiral phase turns to the crossover from the chiral limit to the non-chiral limit around [Formula: see text] in the case of [Formula: see text]. The difference of the quark mass with different [Formula: see text]’s mainly occurs in the intermediate temperatures for the different fixed chemical potentials. At zero temperature and the chemical potential [Formula: see text] there will be two solutions (including a meta-stable solution) of gap equation with [Formula: see text], and as [Formula: see text] increases it will be only one solution left (the meta-stable solution will disappear until [Formula: see text]). Besides, the discrepancy of the critical temperature (above which the pseudo-Wigner solution and negative Nambu solution will disappear) in the three cases of [Formula: see text] will become large when the chemical potential increases.

CJT effective potential approach to analyze the nature of phase transition of thermal QED$$_3$$ at finite volume

Based on the Cornwall–Jackiw–Tomboulis effective potential and the truncated Dyson–Schwinger equations, the nature of phase transition of thermal QED$$_3$$ 3 at finite volume is investigated. We show that, with the rise of temperature, the system undergoes a second-order transition in the chiral limit, and remains exhibiting the second-order with small fermion mass, while it switches to a crossover when the fermion mass exceeds a critical value about $$m_{c}$$ m c , which diminishes with the increasing volume size and tends to zero in infinite volume.

On the order of the QCD chiral phase transition for different numbers of quark flavours

The nature of the QCD chiral phase transition in the limit of vanishing quark masses has remained elusive for a long time, since it cannot be simulated directly on the lattice and is strongly cutoff-dependent. We report on a comprehensive ongoing study using unimproved staggered fermions with Nf ∈ [2, 8] mass-degenerate flavours on Nτ ∈ {4, 6, 8} lattices, in which we locate the chiral critical surface separating regions with first-order transitions from crossover regions in the bare parameter space of the lattice theory. Employing the fact that it terminates in a tricritical line, this surface can be extrapolated to the chiral limit using tricritical scaling with known exponents. Knowing the order of the transitions in the lattice parameter space, conclusions for approaching the continuum chiral limit in the proper order can be drawn. While a narrow first-order region cannot be ruled out, we find initial evidence consistent with a second-order chiral transition in all massless theories with Nf ≤ 6, and possibly up to the onset of the conformal window at 9 ≲ $$ {N}_{\mathrm{f}}^{\ast } $$ N f ∗ ≲ 12. A reanalysis of already published $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (a)-improved Nf = 3 Wilson data on Nτ ∈ [4, 12] is also consistent with tricritical scaling, and the associated change from first to second-order on the way to the continuum chiral limit. We discuss a modified Columbia plot and a phase diagram for many-flavour QCD that reflect these possible features.

The impact of transverse Slavnov-Taylor identities on dynamical chiral symmetry breaking

We extend earlier studies of transverse Ward-Fradkin-Green-Takahashi identities in QED, their usefulness to constrain the transverse fermion-boson vertex and their importance for multiplicative renormalizability, to the equivalent gauge identities in QCD. To this end, we consider transverse Slavnov-Taylor identities that constrain the transverse quark-gluon vertex and derive its eight associated scalar form factors. The complete vertex can be expressed in terms of the quark’s mass and wave-renormalization functions, the ghost-dressing function, the quark-ghost scattering amplitude and a set of eight form factors. The latter parametrize the hitherto unknown nonlocal tensor structure in the transverse Slavnov-Taylor identity which arises from the Fourier transform of a four-point function involving a Wilson line in coordinate space. We determine the functional form of these eight form factors with the constraints provided by the Bashir-Bermudez vertex and study the effects of this novel vertex on the quark in the Dyson-Schwinger equation using lattice QCD input for the gluon and ghost propagators. We observe significant dynamical chiral symmetry breaking and a mass gap that leads to a constituent mass of the order of 500 MeV for the light quarks. The flavor dependence of the mass and wave-renormalization functions as well as their analytic behavior on the complex momentum plane is studied and as an application we calculate the quark condensate and the pion’s weak decay constant in the chiral limit. Both are in very good agreement with their reference values.

Isospin asymmetry in holographic baryonic matter

We study baryonic matter with isospin asymmetry, including fully dynamically its interplay with pion condensation. To this end, we employ the holographic Witten-Sakai-Sugimoto model and the so-called homogeneous ansatz for the gauge fields in the bulk to describe baryonic matter. Within the confined geometry and restricting ourselves to the chiral limit, we map out the phase structure in the presence of baryon and isospin chemical potentials, showing that for sufficiently large chemical potentials condensed pions and isospin-asymmetric baryonic matter coexist. We also present first results of the same approach in the deconfined geometry and demonstrate that this case, albeit technically more involved, is better suited for comparisons with and predictions for real-world QCD. Our study lays the ground for future improved holographic studies aiming towards a realistic description of charge neutral, beta-equilibrated matter in compact stars, and also for more refined comparisons with lattice studies at nonzero isospin chemical potential.

(Phenomenology/Lattice-Compatible) SU(3) MχPT HD up to $$ \mathcal{O} $$(p4) and the $$ \mathcal{O} $$(R4)-Large-N Connection

Obtaining the values of the coupling constants of the low energy effective theory corresponding to QCD, compatible with experimental data, even in the (vector) mesonic sector from (the $$ \mathcal{M} $$ M -theory uplift of) a UV-complete string theory dual, has thus far been missing in the literature. We take the first step in this direction by obtaining the values of the coupling constants of the $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (p4) χPT Lagrangian in the chiral limit involving the NGBs and ρ meson (and its flavor partners) from the $$ \mathcal{M} $$ M -theory/type IIA dual of large-N thermal QCD, inclusive of the $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (R4) corrections. We observe that ensuring compatibility with phenomenological/lattice results (the values) as given in [1], requires a relationship relating the $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (R4) corrections and large-N suppression. In other words, QCD demands that the higher derivative corrections and the large-N suppressed corrections in its M/string theory dual, are related. As a bonus, we explicitly show that the $$ \mathcal{O} $$ O (R4) corrections in the UV to the $$ \mathcal{M} $$ M -theory uplift of the type IIB dual of large-N thermal QCD at low temperatures, can be consistently set to be vanishingly small.