Vector Meson Dominance and $g_{ρππ}$ at Finite Temperature from QCD Sum Rules

Abstract

A Finite Energy QCD sum rule at non-zero temperature is used to determine the $q^2$- and the T-dependence of the $ρππ$ vertex function in the space-like region. A comparison with an independent QCD determination of the electromagnetic pion form factor $F_π$ at $T \neq 0$ indicates that Vector Meson Dominance holds to a very good approximation at finite temperature. At the same time, analytical evidence for deconfinement is obtained from the result that $g_{ρππ}(q^{2},T)$ vanishes at the critical temperature $T_c$, independently of $q^{2}$. Also, by extrapolating the $ρππ$ form factor to $q^2 = 0$, it is found that the pion radius increases with increasing $T$, and it diverges at $T=T_c$.