386 research outputs found
Holographic bulk viscosity: GPR vs EO
Recently Eling and Oz (EO) proposed a formula for the holographic bulk
viscosity, in arXiv:1103.1657, derived from the null horizon focusing equation.
This formula seems different from that obtained earlier by Gubser, Pufu and
Rocha (GPR) in arXiv:0806.0407 calculated from the IR limit of the two-point
function of the trace of the stress tensor. The two were shown to agree only
for some simple scaling cases. We point out that the two formulae agree in two
non-trivial holographic theories describing RG flows. The first is the strongly
coupled N=2* gauge theory plasma. The second is the semi-phenomenological model
of Improved Holographic QCD.Comment: 21 pages, 2 figure
On jet quenching parameters in strongly coupled non-conformal gauge theories
Recently Liu, Rajagopal and Wiedemann (LRW) [hep-ph/0605178] proposed a first
principle, nonperturbative quantum field theoretic definition of ``jet
quenching parameter'' \hat{q} used in models of medium-induced radiative parton
energy loss in nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC. Relating \hat{q} to a
short-distance behavior of a certain light-like Wilson loop, they used gauge
theory-string theory correspondence to evaluate \hat{q} for the strongly
coupled N=4 SU(N_c) gauge theory plasma. We generalize analysis of LRW to
strongly coupled non-conformal gauge theory plasma. We find that a jet
quenching parameter is gauge theory specific (not universal). Furthermore, it
appears it's value increases as the number of effective adjoint degrees of
freedom of a gauge theory plasma increases.Comment: 14 pages, latex; v2: PRD versio
Viscosity Bound and Causality in Superfluid Plasma
It was argued by Brigante et.al that the lower bound on the ratio of the
shear viscosity to the entropy density in strongly coupled plasma is translated
into microcausality violation in the dual gravitational description. Since
transport properties of the system characterize its infrared dynamics, while
the causality of the theory is determined by its ultraviolet behavior, the
viscosity bound/microcausality link should not be applicable to theories that
undergo low temperature phase transitions. We present an explicit model of
AdS/CFT correspondence that confirms this fact.Comment: 27 pages, 5 figures. References added, typos fixe
Gauge/gravity correspondence in accelerating universe
We discuss time-dependent backgrounds of type IIB supergravity realizing
gravitation duals of gauge theories formulated in de Sitter space-time as a
tool of embedding de Sitter in a supergravity. We show that only the
gravitational duals to non-conformal gauge theories are sensitive to a specific
value of a Hubble parameter. We consider two nontrivial solutions of this type:
a gravity dual to six-dimensional (1,1) little string theory, and to a
four-dimensional cascading SU(N+M)xSU(N) supersymmetric gauge theory (related
to fractional D3-branes on a singular conifold according to Klebanov et al), in
accelerating universe. In both cases we argue that the IR singularity of the
geometry is regulated by the expansion of the gauge theory background
space-time.Comment: 13 pages, harvmac, v2: reference added, v3: D3,NS5 discussion
improved, PRD versio
Transport coefficients, membrane couplings and universality at extremality
We present an efficient method for computing the zero frequency limit of
transport coefficients in strongly coupled field theories described
holographically by higher derivative gravity theories. Hydrodynamic parameters
such as shear viscosity and conductivity can be obtained by computing residues
of poles of the off-shell lagrangian density. We clarify in which sense these
coefficients can be thought of as effective couplings at the horizon, and
present analytic, Wald-like formulae for the shear viscosity and conductivity
in a large class of general higher derivative lagrangians. We show how to apply
our methods to systems at zero temperature but finite chemical potential. Our
results imply that such theories satisfy universally in the
Einstein-Maxwell sector. Likewise, the zero frequency limit of the real part of
the conductivity for such systems is shown to be universally zero, and we
conjecture that higher derivative corrections in this sector do not modify this
result to all orders in perturbation theory.Comment: 29 pages, v2: Small text changes for clarity, typos correcte
Gauge/string correspondence in curved space
We discuss Gubser-Klebanov-Polyakov proposal for the gauge/string theory
correspondence for gauge theories in curved space. Specifically, we consider
Klebanov-Tseytlin cascading gauge theory compactified on S^3. We explain regime
when this gauge theory is a small deformation of the superconformal N=1 gauge
theory on the world volume of regular D3-branes at the tip of the conifold. We
study closed string states on the leading Regge trajectory in this background,
and attempt to identify the dual gauge theory twist two operators.Comment: 26 pages, v2: refs adde
Cavitation effects on the confinement/deconfinement transition
Cavitation is a process where the viscous terms in a relativistic fluid
result in reducing the effective pressure, thus facilitating the nucleation of
bubbles of a stable phase. The effect is particularly pronounced in the
vicinity of a (weak) first-order phase transition. We use the holographic
correspondence to study cavitation in a strongly coupled planar cascading gauge
theory plasma close to the confinement/deconfinement phase transition. While in
this particular model the shift of the deconfinement temperature due to
cavitation does not exceed 5%, we speculate that cavitation might be important
near the QCD critical point.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure; v2: minor amendments, journal versio
Black Holes in Quasi-topological Gravity
We construct a new gravitational action which includes cubic curvature
interactions and which provides a useful toy model for the holographic study of
a three parameter family of four- and higher-dimensional CFT's. We also
investigate the black hole solutions of this new gravity theory. Further we
examine the equations of motion of quasi-topological gravity. While the full
equations in a general background are fourth-order in derivatives, we show that
the linearized equations describing gravitons propagating in the AdS vacua
match precisely the second-order equations of Einstein gravity.Comment: 33 pages, 4 figures; two references adde
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