Quantum Isometrodynamics

Classical Isometrodynamics is quantized in the Euclidean plus axial gauge. The quantization is then generalized to a broad class of gauges and the generating functional for the Green functions of Quantum Isometrodynamics (QID) is derived. Feynman rules in covariant Euclidean gauges are determined and QID is shown to be renormalizable by power counting. Asymptotic states are discussed and new quantum numbers related to the "inner" degrees of freedom introduced. The one-loop effective action in a Euclidean background gauge is formally calculated and shown to be finite and gauge-invariant after renormalization and a consistent definition of the arising "inner" space momentum integrals. Pure QID is shown to be asymptotically free for all dimensions of "inner" space $D$ whereas QID coupled to the Standard Model fields is not asymptotically free for D <= 7. Finally nilpotent BRST transformations for Isometrodynamics are derived along with the BRST symmetry of the theory and a scetch of the general proof of renormalizability for QID is given.Comment: 38 page

Effective Field Theory for the Quantum Electrodynamics of a Graphene Wire

We study the low-energy quantum electrodynamics of electrons and holes, in a thin graphene wire. We develop an effective field theory (EFT) based on an expansion in p/p_T, where p_T is the typical momentum of electrons and holes in the transverse direction, while p are the momenta in the longitudinal direction. We show that, to the lowest-order in (p/p_T), our EFT theory is formally equivalent to the exactly solvable Schwinger model. By exploiting such an analogy, we find that the ground state of the quantum wire contains a condensate of electron-hole pairs. The excitation spectrum is saturated by electron-hole collective bound-states, and we calculate the dispersion law of such modes. We also compute the DC conductivity per unit length at zero chemical potential and find g_s =e^2/h, where g_s=4 is the degeneracy factor.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures. Definitive version, accepted for publication on Phys. Rev.

Fading Gravity and Self-Inflation

We study the cosmology of a toy modified theory of gravity in which gravity shuts off at short distances, as in the fat graviton scenario of Sundrum. In the weak-field limit, the theory is perturbatively local, ghost-free and unitary, although likely suffers from non-perturbative instabilities. We derive novel self-inflationary solutions from the vacuum equations of the theory, without invoking scalar fields or other forms of stress energy. The modified perturbation equation expressed in terms of the Newtonian potential closely resembles its counterpart for inflaton fluctuations. The resulting scalar spectrum is therefore slightly red, akin to the simplest scalar-driven inflationary models. A key difference, however, is that the gravitational wave spectrum is generically not scale invariant. In particular the tensor spectrum can have a blue tilt, a distinguishing feature from standard inflation.Comment: 35 pages, 4 figures. v3: version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Gauged supersymmetries in Yang-Mills theory

In this paper we show that Yang-Mills theory in the Curci-Ferrari-Delbourgo-Jarvis gauge admits some up to now unknown local linear Ward identities. These identities imply some non-renormalization theorems with practical simplifications for perturbation theory. We show in particular that all renormalization factors can be extracted from two-point functions. The Ward identities are shown to be related to supergauge transformations in the superfield formalism for Yang-Mills theory. The case of non-zero Curci-Ferrari mass is also addressed.Comment: 11 pages. Minor changes. Some added reference

Gauge Invariant Treatment of the Electroweak Phase Transition

We evaluate the gauge invariant effective potential for the composite field $\sigma=2\Phi^{\dagger}\Phi$ in the SU(2)-Higgs model at finite temperature. Symmetric and broken phases correspond to the domains $\sigma\leq T^2/3$ and $\sigma > T^2/3$, respectively. The effective potential increases very steeply at small values of $\sigma$. Predictions for several observables, derived from the ordinary and the gauge invariant effective potential, are compared. Good agreement is found for the critical temperature and the jump in the order parameter. The results for the latent heat differ significantly for large Higgs masses.Comment: 8 pages latex, DESY-94-043, 4 figures can be obtained via e-mail from [email protected]

Breakdown of the perturbative renormalization group at certain quantum critical points

It is shown that the presence of multiple time scales at a quantum critical point can lead to a breakdown of the loop expansion for critical exponents, since coefficients in the expansion diverge. Consequently, results obtained from finite-order perturbative renormalization-group treatments may be not be an approximation in any sense to the true asymptotic critical behavior. This problem manifests itself as a non-renormalizable field theory, or, equivalently, as the presence of a dangerous irrelevant variable. The quantum ferromagnetic transition in disordered metals provides an example.Comment: 4pp, 1 eps fi

The Effect of Interactions on the Conductance of Graphene Nanoribbons

We study the effects of the interaction between electrons and holes on the conductance G of quasi-one-dimensional graphene systems. We first consider as a benchmark the limit in which all interactions are negligible, recovering the predictions of the tight-binding approximation for the spectrum of the system, and the well-known result G=4 e^2/h for the lowest conductance quantum. Then we consider an exactly solvable field theoretical model in which the electro-magnetic interactions are effectively local. Finally, we use the effective field theory formalism to develop an exactly solvable model in which we also include the effect of non-local interactions. We find that such interactions turn the nominally metallic armchair graphene nanoribbon into a semi-conductor, while the short-range interactions lead to a correction to the G=4 e^2/h formula.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figur

Critical behavior of supersymmetric O(N) models in the large-N limit

We derive a supersymmetric renormalization group (RG) equation for the scale-dependent superpotential of the supersymmetric O(N) model in three dimensions. For a supersymmetric optimized regulator function we solve the RG equation for the superpotential exactly in the large-N limit. The fixed-point solutions are classified by an exactly marginal coupling. In the weakly coupled regime there exists a unique fixed point solution, for intermediate couplings we find two separate fixed point solutions and in the strong coupling regime no globally defined fixed-point potentials exist. We determine the exact critical exponents both for the superpotential and the associated scalar potential. Finally we relate the high-temperature limit of the four-dimensional theory to the Wilson-Fisher fixed point of the purely scalar theory.Comment: 13 pages,4 figure

Regularization Methods in Chiral Perturbation Theory

Chiral lagrangians describing the interactions of Goldstone bosons in a theory possessing spontaneous symmetry breaking are effective, non-renormalizable field theories in four dimensions. Yet, in a momentum expansion one is able to extract definite, testable predictions from perturbation theory. These techniques have yielded in recent years a wealth of information on many problems where the physics of Goldstone bosons plays a crucial role, but theoretical issues concerning chiral perturbation theory remain, to this date, poorly treated in the literature. We present here a rather comprehensive analysis of the regularization and renormalization ambiguities appearing in chiral perturbation theory at the one loop level. We discuss first on the relevance of dealing with tadpoles properly. We demonstrate that Ward identities severely constrain the choice of regulators to the point of enforcing unique, unambiguous results in chiral perturbation theory at the one-loop level for any observable which is renormalization-group invariant. We comment on the physical implications of these results and on several possible regulating methods that may be of use for some applications.Comment: 37 pages, 5 figs. not included (available upon request), LaTeX, PREPRINT UB-ECM-PF 93/1