Phase Structure of Non-Compact QED3 and the Abelian Higgs Model

We review the phase structure of a three-dimensional, non-compact Abelian gauge theory (QED3) as a function of the number $N$ of 4-component massless fermions. There is a critical $N_{c}$ up to which there is dynamical fermion mass generation and an associated global symmetry breaking. We discuss various approaches to the determination of $N_c$, which lead to estimates ranging from $N_c =1$ to $N_c =4$. This theory with N=2 has been employed as an effective continuum theory for the 2D quantum antiferromagnet where the observed Neel ordering corresponds to dynamical fermion mass generation. Thus the value of $N_c$ is of some physical interest. We also consider the phase structure of the model with a finite gauge boson mass (the Abelian Higgs model).Comment: 14 pages, corrected the normalization of the fermion condensate in section V, corrected a typo in the reference

Spectrum and Statistical Entropy of AdS Black Holes

Popular approaches to quantum gravity describe black hole microstates differently and apply different statistics to count them. Since the relationship between the approaches is not clear, this obscures the role of statistics in calculating the black hole entropy. We address this issue by discussing the entropy of eternal AdS black holes in dimension four and above within the context of a midisuperspace model. We determine the black hole eigenstates and find that they describe the quantization in half integer units of a certain function of the Arnowitt-Deser-Misner (ADM) mass and the cosmological constant. In the limit of a vanishing cosmological constant (the Schwarzschild limit) the quantized function becomes the horizon area and in the limit of a large cosmological constant it approaches the ADM mass of the black holes. We show that in the Schwarzschild limit the area quatization leads to the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy if Boltzmann statistics are employed. In the limit of a large cosmological constant the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy can be recovered only via Bose statistics. The two limits are separated by a first order phase transition, which seems to suggest a shift from "particle-like" degrees of freedom at large cosmological constant to geometric degrees of freedom as the cosmological constant approaches zero.Comment: 14 pages. No figures. Some references added. Version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Stability of D-brane embeddings in nontrivial backgrounds

We propose a new analytical method for determining whether nonsupersymmetric probe branes embedded in nontrivial backgrounds are perturbatively stable or not. The method is based on a relationship between zero mass solutions of the relevant DBI equations of motion and tachyonic solutions. Furthermore, due to the above relation, the question, of whether a classical solution is stable or not, can be answered simply by studying the derivatives of that solution with respect to its integration constants. Finally, we illustrate the efficiency of this method by applying it to several interesting examples.Comment: 18 pages; introductory material added in Section 2, journal versio

An evaluation of the analytic continuation by duality technique

In Nucl. Phys. B391 (1993) 127, the value of the oblique correction parameter S for walking technicolor theories was estimated using a technique called Analytic Continuation by Duality (ACD). We apply the ACD technique to the perturbative vacuum polarization function and find that it fails to reproduce the well known result S=1/6\pi. This brings into question the reliability of the ACD technique and the ACD estimate of S.Comment: 8 pages, LaTeX, 1 postscript figure. Uses cite.sty, sprocl.sty, and epsfig.sty. Talk presented at the 1996 International Workshop on Perspectives of Strong Coupling Gauge Theories (SCGT'96), 13-16 Nov. 1996, Nagoy

Analytic approximation to 5 dimensional Black Holes with one compact dimension

We study black hole solutions in $R^4\times S^1$ space, using an expansion to fourth order in the ratio of the radius of the horizon, $\mu$, and the circumference of the compact dimension, $L$. A study of geometric and thermodynamic properties indicates that the black hole fills the space in the compact dimension at $\epsilon(\mu/L)^2\simeq0.1$. At the same value of $\epsilon$ the entropies of the uniform black string and of the black hole are approximately equal.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures. Replaces previous version, with added references and slightly altered discussio