A Chromomagnetic Mechanism for the Rotational Phase Transition of Gluonic Matter

Abstract

Rotation serves as a pivotal control parameter for QCD matter, yet effective models and lattice QCD yield conflicting predictions regarding its effect on the deconfinement transition. Using a rotation-magnetic correspondence within a holographic framework, we investigate the rotational response of pure gluonic matter. Calibrated against lattice QCD data at imaginary angular velocity, we find real rotation enhances chromomagnetic string tension and raises deconfinement temperature, consistent with lattice QCD analytic-continuation predictions. The temperature dependence of chromomagnetic string tension dominates the system's Barnett response: weak low-temperature tension induces the negative Barnett effect, and slightly above the transition, spin contributions prevail to generate an anomalous negative total moment of inertia. Since growing angular velocity further strengthens chromomagnetic string tension and suppresses spin-dominated inversion, this anomalous regime only survives at weak real rotation and vanishes at large angular velocity. At high temperature, fully restored strong string tension stabilizes conventional Barnett behavior. Stemming from the melting and thermal restoration of nonperturbative chromomagnetic flux tubes, our results establish the chromomagnetic-induced inertia inversion (CII) mechanism as the microscopic origin of this anomalous rotational response.