Theta dependence of the vacuum energy density in chiral effective Lagrangian models at finite temperature, above $T_c$

Abstract

In this work, extending a previous study at zero temperature ($T=0$), we perform a systematic study of the modifications to the QCD vacuum energy density $\epsilon_{vac}$ in the finite-temperature case, above the chiral transition at $T_c$, caused by a nonzero value of the parameter $\theta$, using two different effective Lagrangian models which implement the $U(1)$ axial anomaly of the fundamental theory and which are both well defined also above $T_c$. In particular, we derive (and critically compare) the expressions for the topological susceptibility $\chi$ and for the second cumulant $c_4$ starting from the $\theta$ dependence of $\epsilon_{vac}(\theta)$ in the two models.