arXiv subjects

C. D. Fosco

Publications and source records attributed to C. D. Fosco.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2008

Casimir effect with dynamical matter on thin mirrors

We calculate the Casimir energy for scalar and gauge fields in interaction with zero-width mirrors, including quantum effects due to the matter fields inside the mirrors. We consider models where those fields are either scalar or fermionic, obtaining general expressions for the energy as a function of the vacuum field 1PI function. We also study, within the frame of a concrete model, the role of the dissipation induced by those degrees of freedom, showing that, after integration of the matter fields, the effective theory for the electromagnetic field contains modes with complex energies. As for the case of Lifshitz formula, we show that the formal result obtained by neglecting dissipation coincides with the correct result that comes from the quantum fluctuations of both bulk and matter fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

Functional approach to the fermionic Casimir effect

We use a functional approach to calculate the Casimir energy due to Dirac fields in interaction with thin, flat, parallel walls, which implement imperfect bag-like boundary conditions. These are simulated by the introduction of delta-like interactions with the walls. We show that, with a proper choice for the corresponding coupling constants, bag-model boundary condition are properly implemented. We obtain explicit expressions for the energies in 1+1 and 3+1 dimensions, for massless and massive fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

Casimir energies with finite-width mirrors

We use a functional approach to the Casimir effect in order to evaluate the exact vacuum energy for a real scalar field in $d+1$ dimensions, in the presence of backgrounds that, in a particular limit, impose Dirichlet boundary conditions on one or two parallel surfaces. Outside of that limit, the background may be thought of as describing finite-width mirrors with frequency-dependent transmission and reflection coefficients. We provide new explicit results for the Casimir energy in some particular backgrounds

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

A Dual Path Integral Representation for Finite Temperature Quantum Field Theory

We impose the periodicity conditions corresponding to the Matsubara formalism for Thermal Field Theory as constraints in the imaginary time path integral. These constraints are introduced by means of time-independent auxiliary fields which, by integration of the original variables, become dynamical fields in the resulting `dual' representation for the theory. This alternative representation has the appealing property of involving fields which live in one dimension less than the original ones, with a quantum partition function whose integration measure is identical to the one of its classical counterpart, albeit with a different (spatially nonlocal) action.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

Noncommutative real scalar field theory in 2+1 dimensions at finite temperature

We study thermal effects for a noncommutative real scalar field in 2+1 dimensions including a Grosse-Wulkenhaar term. Using a perturbative expansion for the free energy, we deduce some general properties of the corresponding contributions, in the thermodynamic limit. We show that the model can be consistently interpreted as defined on a finite volume, which is naturally determined by the noncommutativity scale.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

Casimir effect in 2+1 dimensional noncommutative theories

We study the Dirichlet Casimir effect for a complex scalar field on two noncommutative spatial coordinates plus a commutative time. To that end, we introduce Dirichlet-like boundary conditions on a curve contained in the spatial plane, in such a way that the correct commutative limit can be reached. We evaluate the resulting Casimir energy for two different curves: (a) Two parallel lines separated by a distance $L$, and (b) a circle of radius $R$. In the first case, the resulting Casimir energy agrees exactly with the one corresponding to the commutative case, regardless of the values of $L$ and of the noncommutativity scale $θ$, while for the latter the commutative behaviour is only recovered when $R >> \sqrtθ$. Outside of that regime, the dependence of the energy with $R$ is substantially changed due to noncommutative corrections, becoming regular for $R \to 0$.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

One-loop effects in a self-dual planar noncommutative theory

We study the UV properties, and derive the explicit form of the one-loop effective action, for a noncommutative complex scalar field theory in 2+1 dimensions with a Grosse-Wulkenhaar term, at the self-dual point. We also consider quantum effects around non-trivial minima of the classical action which appear when the potential allows for the spontaneous breaking of the U(1) symmetry. For those solutions, we show that the one-loop correction to the vacuum energy is a function of a special combination of the amplitude of the classical solution and the coupling constant.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

Quantum dissipative effects in moving mirrors: a functional approach

We use a functional approach to study various aspects of the quantum effective dynamics of moving, planar, dispersive mirrors, coupled to scalar or Dirac fields, in different numbers of dimensions. We first compute the Euclidean effective action, and use it to derive the imaginary part of the `in-out' effective action. We also obtain, for the case of the real scalar field in 1+1 dimensions, the Schwinger-Keldysh effective action and a semiclassical Langevin equation that describes the motion of the mirror including noise and dissipative effects due to its coupling to the quantum fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

Spin in the Worldline Path Integral in 2+1 Dimensions

We construct a worldline path integral for the effective action and propagator of a Dirac field in 2+1 dimensions in an Abelian gauge field background. Integrating over an auxiliary gauge group variable we derive a worldline action depending only on $x(τ)$, the spacetime paths. We show that that action is a combination of a kinetic term plus a spin action. The first is proportional to $δ[\dot{x}^2(τ)- 1]$. The second agrees exactly with the spin action one should expect for a spin-1/2 field.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

A simple derivation of the Overlap Dirac Operator

We derive the vector-like four dimensional overlap Dirac operator starting from a five dimensional Dirac action in the presence of a delta-function space-time defect. The effective operator is obtained by first integrating out all the fermionic modes in the fixed gauge background, and then identifying the contribution from the localized modes as the determinant of an operator in one dimension less. We define physically relevant degrees of freedom on the defect by introducing an auxiliary defect-bound fermion field and integrating out the original five dimensional bulk field.

hep-lat↗

arXiv2007

A new path integral representation for the thermal partition function

The boundary conditions corresponding to the Matsubara formalism for the $T > 0$ partition function may be introduced as {\em constraints} in the path integral for the vacuum amplitude. We implement those constraints with time-independent Lagrange multipliers and, by integrating out the original fields, we obtain an alternative representation for the partition function, in terms of the Lagrange multipliers as dynamical fields. The resulting functional integral has the appealing property of involving only $d$-dimensional, {\em time independent} fields, and looks like a nonlocal version of the classical partition function. We develop this formalism within the context of the scalar and Dirac fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2006

Casimir bag energy in the stochastic approximation to the pure QCD vacuum

We study the Casimir contribution to the bag energy coming from gluon field fluctuations, within the context of the stochastic vacuum model (SVM) of pure QCD. After formulating the problem in terms of the generating functional of field strength cumulants, we argue that the resulting predictions about the Casimir energy are compatible with the phenomenologically required bag energy term.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2006

Thermal boundary conditions as constraints

We introduce the boundary conditions corresponding to the imaginary-time (Matsubara) formalism for the finite-temperature partition function in $d+1$ dimensions as {\em constraints} in the path integral for the vacuum amplitude (the zero-temperature partition function). We implement those constraints by using Lagrange multipliers, which are static fields, two of them associated to each physical degree of freedom. After integrating out the original, physical fields, we obtain an effective representation for the partition function, depending only on the Lagrange multipliers. The resulting functional integral has the appealing property of involving only $d$-dimensional, {\em time independent} fields, looking like a non local version of the classical partition function. We analyze the main properties of this novel representation for the partition function, developing the formalism within the context of two concrete examples: the real scalar and Dirac fields.

hep-th↗

arXiv2006

Effective action for $QED_3$ in a region with borders

We study quantum effects due to a Dirac field in 2+1 dimensions, confined to a spatial region with a non-trivial boundary, and minimally coupled to an Abelian gauge field. To that end, we apply a path-integral representation, which is applied to the evaluation of the Casimir energy and to the study of the contribution of the boundary modes to the effective action when an external gauge field is present. We also implement a large-mass expansion, deriving results which are, in principle, valid for any geometry. We compare them with their counterparts obtained from the large-mass `bosonized' effective theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2005

New tests and applications of the worldline path integral in the first order formalism

We present different non-perturbative calculations within the context of Migdal's representation for the propagator and effective action of quantum particles. We first calculate the exact propagators and effective actions for Dirac, scalar and Proca fields in the presence of constant electromagnetic fields, for an even-dimensional spacetime. Then we derive the propagator for a charged scalar field in a spacelike vortex (i.e., instanton) background, in a long-distance expansion, and the exact propagator for a massless Dirac field in 1+1 dimensions in an arbitrary background. Finally, we present an interpretation of the chiral anomaly in the present context, finding a condition that the paths must fulfil in order to have a non-vanishing anomaly.

hep-th↗

arXiv2005

Massless Fermions and the Instanton Dipole Liquid in Compact QED_3

We study the consequences of including parity preserving matter for the effective dual theory corresponding to compact QED_3; in particular we focus on the effect of that contribution on the confinement-deconfinement properties of the system. To that end, we compare two recent proposals when massless fermions are included, both based on an effective anomalous dual model, but having global and local Z_2 symmetries, respectively. We present a detailed analysis to show that while for large mass fermions the global Z_2 symmetry is preferred, in the massless fermion case the local Z_2 scenario turns out to be the proper one. We present a detailed discussion about how the inclusion of massless fermions in compact QED_3 leads to deconfinement, and discuss the stability of the deconfined phase by introducing a description based on an instanton dipole liquid picture.

hep-th↗

arXiv2005

Entanglement and alpha entropies for a massive Dirac field in two dimensions

We present some exact results about universal quantities derived from the local density matrix, for a free massive Dirac field in two dimensions. We first find the trace of powers of the density matrix in a novel fashion, which involves the correlators of suitable operators in the sine-Gordon model. These, in turn, can be written exactly in terms of the solutions of non-linear differential equations of the Painlevé V type. Equipped with the previous results, we find the leading terms for the entanglement entropy, both for short and long distances, and showing that in the intermediate regime it can be expanded in a series of multiple integrals. The previous results have been checked by direct numerical calculations on the lattice, finding perfect agreement. Finally, we comment on a possible generalization of the entanglement entropy c-theorem to the alpha-entropies.

cond-mat.other↗

arXiv2005

Zero modes in non local domain walls

We generalize the Callan-Harvey mechanism to the case of actions with a non local mass term for the fermions. Using a 2+1-dimensional model as a concrete example, we show that both the existence and properties of localized zero modes can also be consistently studied when the mass is non local. We derive some general properties from a study of the resulting integral equations, and consider their realization in a concrete example.

hep-th↗