Publications

Order by: publication date number of citations

• Renormalised spectral flows

  Jens Braun, Yong-rui Chen, Wei-jie Fu, Andreas Geißel, Jan Horak, Chuang Huang, Friederike Ihssen, Jan M. Pawlowski, Manuel Reichert, Fabian Rennecke, Yang-yang Tan, Sebastian Töpfel, Jonas Wessely, Nicolas Wink

  SciPost Phys. Core 6, 061 (2023) · published 4 September 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We derive renormalised finite functional flow equations for quantum field theories in real and imaginary time that incorporate scale transformations of the renormalisation conditions, hence implementing a flowing renormalisation. The flows are manifestly finite in general non-perturbative truncation schemes also for regularisation schemes that do not implement an infrared suppression of the loops in the flow. Specifically, this formulation includes finite functional flows for the effective action with a spectral Callan-Symanzik cutoff, and therefore gives access to Lorentz invariant spectral flows. The functional setup is fully non-perturbative and allows for the spectral treatment of general theories. In particular, this includes theories that do not admit a perturbative renormalisation such as asymptotically safe theories. Finally, the application of the Lorentz invariant spectral functional renormalisation group is briefly discussed for theories ranging from real scalar and Yukawa theories to gauge theories and quantum gravity.

  7 citations

• CFTs with $\mathbf{U(m)\times U(n)}$ global symmetry in 3D and the chiral phase transition of QCD

  Stefanos R. Kousvos, Andreas Stergiou

  SciPost Phys. 15, 075 (2023) · published 31 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Conformal field theories (CFTs) with $U(m)\times U(n)$ global symmetry in $d=3$ dimensions have been studied for years due to their potential relevance to the chiral phase transition of quantum chromodynamics (QCD). In this work such CFTs are analyzed in $d=4-\varepsilon$ and $d=3$. This includes perturbative computations in the $\varepsilon$ and large-$n$ expansions as well as non-perturbative ones with the numerical conformal bootstrap. New perturbative results are presented and a variety of non-perturbative bootstrap bounds are obtained in $d=3$. Various features of the bounds obtained for large values of $n$ disappear for low values of $n$ (keeping $m<n$ fixed), a phenomenon which is attributed to a transition of the corresponding fixed points to the non-unitary regime. Numerous bootstrap bounds are found that are saturated by large-$n$ results, even in the absence of any features in the bounds. A double scaling limit is also observed, for $m$ and $n$ large with $m/n$ fixed, both in perturbation theory as well as in the numerical bootstrap. For the case of two-flavor massless QCD existing bootstrap evidence is reproduced that the chiral phase transition may be second order, albeit associated to a universality class unrelated to the one usually discussed in the $\varepsilon$ expansion. Similar evidence is found for the case of three-flavor massless QCD, where we observe a pronounced kink.

  2 citations

• Functional flows for complex effective actions

  Friederike Ihssen, Jan M. Pawlowski

  SciPost Phys. 15, 074 (2023) · published 31 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  In the present work we set up a general functional renormalisation group framework for the computation of complex effective actions. For explicit computations we consider both flows of the Wilsonian effective action and the one-particle irreducible (1PI) effective action. The latter is based on an appropriate definition of a Legendre transform for complex actions, and we show its validity by comparison to exact results in zero dimensions, as well as a comparison to results for the Wilsonian effective action. In the present implementations of the general approaches, the flow of the Wilsonian effective action has a wider range of applicability and we obtain results for the effective potential of complex fields in $\phi^4$-theories from zero up to four dimensions. These results are also compared with results from the 1PI effective action within its range of applicability. The complex effective action also allows us to determine the location of the Lee-Yang zeros for general parameter values. We also discuss the extension of the present results to general theories including QCD.

  2 citations

• Quantum chaos in 2D gravity

  Alexander Altland, Boris Post, Julian Sonner, Jeremy van der Heijden, Erik Verlinde

  SciPost Phys. 15, 064 (2023) · published 16 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We present a quantitative and fully non-perturbative description of the ergodic phase of quantum chaos in the setting of two-dimensional gravity. To this end we describe the doubly non-perturbative completion of semiclassical 2D gravity in terms of its associated universe field theory. The guiding principle of our analysis is a flavor-matrix theory (fMT) description of the ergodic phase of holographic gravity, which exhibits $\mathrm{U}(n|n)$ causal symmetry breaking and restoration. JT gravity and its 2D-gravity cousins alone do not realize an action principle with causal symmetry, however we demonstrate that their universe field theory, the Kodaira-Spencer (KS) theory of gravity, does. After directly deriving the fMT from brane-antibrane correlators in KS theory, we show that causal symmetry breaking and restoration can be understood geometrically in terms of different (topological) D-brane vacua. We interpret our results in terms of an open-closed string duality between holomorphic Chern-Simons theory and its closed-string equivalent, the KS theory of gravity. Emphasis will be put on relating these geometric principles to the characteristic spectral correlations of the quantum ergodic phase.

  8 citations

• 2-group global symmetries, hydrodynamics and holography

  Nabil Iqbal, Napat Poovuttikul

  SciPost Phys. 15, 063 (2023) · published 16 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  2-group global symmetries are a particular example of how higher-form and conventional global symmetries can fuse together into a larger structure. We construct a theory of hydrodynamics describing the finite-temperature realization of a 2-group global symmetry composed out of $U(1)$ zero-form and $U(1)$ one-form symmetries. We study aspects of the thermodynamics from a Euclidean partition function and derive constitutive relations for ideal hydrodynamics from various points of view. Novel features of the resulting theory include an analogue of the chiral magnetic effect and a chiral sound mode propagating along magnetic field lines. We also discuss a minimalist holographic description of a theory dual to 2-group global symmetry and verify predictions from hydrodynamic descriptions. Along the way we clarify some aspects of symmetry breaking in higher-form theories at finite temperature.

  5 citations

• Higher-point integrands in $\mathcal{N} = 4$ super Yang-Mills theory

  Till Bargheer, Thiago Fleury, Vasco Gonçalves

  SciPost Phys. 15, 059 (2023) · published 10 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We compute the integrands of five-, six-, and seven-point correlation functions of twenty-prime operators with general polarizations at the two-loop order in $\mathcal{N}=4$ super Yang-Mills theory. In addition, we compute the integrand of the five-point function at three-loop order. Using the operator product expansion, we extract the two-loop four-point function of one Konishi operator and three twenty-prime operators. Two methods were used for computing the integrands. The first method is based on constructing an ansatz, and then numerically fitting for the coefficients using the twistor-space reformulation of $\mathcal{N}=4$ super Yang-Mills theory. The second method is based on the OPE decomposition. Only very few correlator integrands for more than four points were known before. Our results can be used to test conjectures, and to make progresses on the integrability-based hexagonalization approach for correlation functions.

  1 citation

• Near-extremal limits of warped CFTs

  Ankit Aggarwal, Alejandra Castro, Stéphane Detournay, Beatrix Mühlmann

  SciPost Phys. 15, 056 (2023) · published 9 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  Warped conformal field theories (WCFTs) are two-dimensional non-relativistic systems, with a chiral scaling and shift symmetry. We present a detailed derivation of the near-extremal limit for their torus partition function. This limit requires large values of the central charge, and is only consistent for non-unitary WCFT. We compare our analysis with previous studies of WCFT and its relation to a one-dimensional warped-Schwarzian theory. We discuss different ensembles of warped CFTs and contrast our results with analogous limits in two-dimensional CFTs.

  1 citation

• Conformal dispersion relations for defects and boundaries

  Lorenzo Bianchi, Davide Bonomi

  SciPost Phys. 15, 055 (2023) · published 8 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We derive a dispersion relation for two-point correlation functions in defect conformal field theories. The correlator is expressed as an integral over a (single) discontinuity that is controlled by the bulk channel operator product expansion (OPE). This very simple relation is particularly useful in perturbative settings where the discontinuity is determined by a subset of bulk operators. In particular, we apply it to holographic correlators of two chiral primary operators in $\mathcal{N}=4$ Super Yang-Mills theory in the presence of a supersymmetric Wilson line. With a very simple computation, we are able to reproduce and extend existing results. We also propose a second relation, which reconstructs the correlator from a double discontinuity, and is controlled by the defect channel OPE. Finally, for the case of codimension-one defects (boundaries and interfaces) we derive a dispersion relation which receives contributions from both OPE channels and we apply it to the boundary correlator in the O(N) critical model. We reproduce the order $\epsilon^2$ result in the $\epsilon$-expansion using as input a finite number of boundary CFT data.

  5 citations

• Holography for bulk states in 3D quantum gravity

  Joris Raeymaekers, Gideon Vos

  SciPost Phys. 15, 054 (2023) · published 8 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  In this work we discuss the holographic description of states in the Hilbert space of (2+1)-dimensional quantum gravity, living on a time slice in the bulk. We focus on pure gravity coupled to pointlike sources for heavy spinning particles. We develop a formulation where the equations for the backreacted metric reduce to two decoupled Liouville equations with delta-function sources under pseudosphere boundary conditions. We show that both the semiclassical wavefunction and the gravity solution are determined by a universal object, namely a classical Virasoro vacuum block on the sphere. In doing so we derive a version of Polyakov's conjecture, as well as an existence criterion, for classical Liouville theory on the pseudosphere. We also discuss how some of these results are modified when considering closed universes with compact spatial slices.

  1 citation

• Gravity from thermodynamics: Optimal transport and negative effective dimensions

  Giuseppe Bruno De Luca, Nicolò De Ponti, Andrea Mondino, Alessandro Tomasiello

  SciPost Phys. 15, 039 (2023) · published 1 August 2023 | Toggle abstract · pdf

  We prove an equivalence between the classical equations of motion governing vacuum gravity compactifications (and more general warped-product spacetimes) and a concavity property of entropy under time evolution. This is obtained by linking the theory of optimal transport to the Raychaudhuri equation in the internal space, where the warp factor introduces effective notions of curvature and (negative) internal dimension. When the Reduced Energy Condition is satisfied, concavity can be characterized in terms of the cosmological constant $\Lambda$; as a consequence, the masses of the spin-two Kaluza-Klein fields obey bounds in terms of $\Lambda$ alone. We show that some Cheeger bounds on the KK spectrum hold even without assuming synthetic Ricci lower bounds, in the large class of infinitesimally Hilbertian metric measure spaces, which includes D-brane and O-plane singularities. As an application, we show how some approximate string theory solutions in the literature achieve scale separation, and we construct a new explicit parametrically scale-separated AdS solution of M-theory supported by Casimir energy.

  4 citations