Renormalization group and spectra of the generalized P\"oschl-Teller potential

Abstract

We study the P\"oschl-Teller potential $V(x) = \alpha^2 g_s \sinh^{-2}(\alpha x) + \alpha^2 g_c \cosh^{-2}(\alpha x)$, for every value of the dimensionless parameters $g_s$ and $g_c$, including the less usual ranges for which the regular singularity at the origin prevents the Hamiltonian from being self-adjoint. We apply a renormalization procedure to obtain a family of well-defined energy eigenfunctions, and study the associated renormalization group (RG) flow. We find an anomalous length scale that appears by dimensional transmutation, and spontaneously breaks the asymptotic conformal symmetry near the singularity, which is also explicitly broken by the dimensionful parameter $\alpha$ in the potential. These two competing ways of breaking conformal symmetry give the RG flow a rich structure, with phenomena such as a possible region of walking coupling, massive phases, and non-trivial limits even when the anomalous dimension is absent. We show that supersymmetry of the potential, when present, is also spontaneously broken, along with asymptotic conformal symmetry. We use the family of eigenfunctions to compute the S-matrix in all regions of parameter space, for any value of anomalous scale, and systematically study the poles of the S-matrix to classify all bound, anti-bound and metastable states, including quasi-normal modes. The anomalous scale, as expected, changes the spectra in non-trivial ways.