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C. Vergu

Publications and source records attributed to C. Vergu.

16 recordsLinked to original sources

Landau Analysis in Momentum Space with Massless Particles: an Amuse Bouche

We illustrate how methods from Landau analysis that have been developed for studying the properties of massive Feynman integrals in momentum space can be generalized to massless integrals. We consider integrals with both massive and massless propagators in arbitrary dimensions, paying attention to square root branch points. By focusing on a number of well-chosen examples, we show how resolution of singularities (via blow-ups or complex structure deformation) can be used to predict how the behavior of these integrals is modified as different numbers of propagators are chosen to be massless.

hep-th

Cutkosky representation and direct integration

We present a new method of direct integration of Feynman integrals based on the Cutkosky representation of the integrals. In this representation we are able to explicitly compute the integrals which yield square root singularities and leave only the integrals which yield logarithmic singularities, thus making the transcendentality weight manifest. The method is elementary, algorithmic, does not introduce spurious non-physical singularities and does not require a reduction to a basis of pure integrals.

hep-th

Defect multiplets of N=1 supersymmetry in 4d

Any 4d theory possessing $\mathcal{N}=1$ supersymmetry admits a so called $\mathcal{S}$-multiplet, containing the conserved energy-momentum tensor and supercurrent. When a defect is introduced into such a theory, the $\mathcal{S}$-multiplet receives contributions localised on the defect, which indicate the breaking of some translation symmetry and consequently also some supersymmetries. We call this the defect multiplet. We classify such terms corresponding to half-BPS defects which can be either three-dimensional, preserving 3d $\mathcal{N}=1$, or two-dimensional, preserving $\mathcal{N}=(0,2)$. The new terms localised on the defect furnish multiplets of the reduced symmetry and give rise to the displacement operator.

hep-th

Twistor Parametrization of Locally BPS Super-Wilson Loops

We consider the kinematics of the locally BPS super-Wilson loop in $\mathcal{N}=4$ super-Yang-Mills with scalar coupling from a twistorial point of view. We find that the kinematics can be described either as supersymmetrized pure spinors or as a point in $G_{2\vert 2}(4\vert 4) \times G_{2\vert 2}(4\vert 4)$. In this description of the kinematics the scalar--scalar correlation function appearing in the one-loop evaluation of the super-Wilson loop can be neatly written as a sum of four super-determinants.

hep-th

Polylogarithm identities, cluster algebras and the N=4 supersymmetric theory

Scattering amplitudes in N = 4 super-Yang Mills theory can be computed to higher perturbative orders than in any other four-dimensional quantum field theory. The results are interesting transcendental functions. By a hidden symmetry (dual conformal symmetry) the arguments of these functions have a geometric interpretation in terms of configurations of points in CP^3 and they turn out to be cluster coordinates. We briefly introduce cluster algebras and discuss their Poisson structure and the Sklyanin bracket. Finally, we present a 40-term trilogarithm identity which was discovered by accident while studying the physical results.

hep-th

All Two-Loop MHV Amplitudes in Multi-Regge Kinematics From Applied Symbology

Recent progress on scattering amplitudes has benefited from the mathematical technology of symbols for efficiently handling the types of polylogarithm functions which frequently appear in multi-loop computations. The symbol for all two-loop MHV amplitudes in planar SYM theory is known, but explicit analytic formulas for the amplitudes are hard to come by except in special limits where things simplify, such as multi-Regge kinematics. By applying symbology we obtain a formula for the leading behavior of the imaginary part (the Mandelstam cut contribution) of this amplitude in multi-Regge kinematics for any number of gluons. Our result predicts a simple recursive structure which agrees with a direct BFKL computation carried out in a parallel publication.

hep-th

Classical Polylogarithms for Amplitudes and Wilson Loops

We present a compact analytic formula for the two-loop six-particle MHV remainder function (equivalently, the two-loop light-like hexagon Wilson loop) in N = 4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory in terms of the classical polylogarithm functions Li_k with cross-ratios of momentum twistor invariants as their arguments. In deriving our result we rely on results from the theory of motives.

hep-th

The Six-Point NMHV amplitude in Maximally Supersymmetric Yang-Mills Theory

We present an integral representation for the parity-even part of the two-loop six-point planar NMHV amplitude in terms of Feynman integrals which have simple transformation properties under the dual conformal symmetry. We probe the dual conformal properties of the amplitude numerically, subtracting the known infrared divergences. We find that the subtracted amplitude is invariant under dual conformal transformations, confirming existing conjectures through two-loop order. We also discuss the all-loop structure of the six-point NMHV amplitude and give a parametrization whose dual conformal invariant building blocks have a simple physical interpretation.

hep-th

Generalized scaling function from light-cone gauge AdS_5 x S^5 superstring

We revisit the computation of the 2-loop correction to the energy of a folded spinning string in AdS_5 with an angular momentum J in S^5 in the scaling limit log S, J >>1 with J / log S fixed. This correction gives the third term in the strong-coupling expansion of the generalized scaling function. The computation, using the AdS light-cone gauge approach developed in our previous paper, is done by expanding the AdS_5 x S^5 superstring partition function near the generalized null cusp world surface associated to the spinning string solution. The result corrects and extends the previous conformal gauge result of arXiv:0712.2479 and is found to be in complete agreement with the corresponding terms in the generalized scaling function as obtained from the asymptotic Bethe ansatz in arXiv:0805.4615 (and also partially from the quantum O(6) model and the Bethe ansatz data in arXiv:0809.4952). This provides a highly nontrivial strong coupling comparison of the Bethe ansatz proposal with the quantum AdS_5 x S^5 superstring theory, which goes beyond the leading semiclassical term effectively controlled by the underlying algebraic curve. The 2-loop computation we perform involves all the structures in the AdS light-cone gauge superstring action of hep-th/0009171 and thus tests its ultraviolet finiteness and, through the agreement with the Bethe ansatz, its quantum integrability. We do most of the computations for a generalized spinning string solution or the corresponding null cusp surface that involves both the orbital momentum and the winding in a large circle of S^5.

hep-th

Quantum AdS_5 x S^5 superstring in the AdS light-cone gauge

We consider the AdS_5 x S^5 superstring in the light-cone gauge adapted to a massless geodesic in AdS5 in the Poincare patch. The resulting action has a relatively simple structure which makes it a natural starting point for various perturbative quantum computations. We illustrate the utility of this AdS light-cone gauge action by computing the 1-loop and 2-loop corrections to the null cusp anomalous dimension reproducing in a much simpler and efficient way earlier results obtained in conformal gauge. This leads to a further insight into the structure of the superstring partition function in non-trivial background.

hep-th

Factorized Tree-level Scattering in AdS_4 x CP^3

AdS_4/CFT_3 duality relating IIA string theory on AdS_4 x CP^3 to N=6 superconformal Chern-Simons theory provides an arena for studying aspects of integrability in a new potentially exactly solvable system. In this paper we explore the tree-level worldsheet scattering for strings on AdS_4 x CP^3. We compute all bosonic four-, five- and six-point amplitudes in the gauge-fixed action and demonstrate the absence of particle production.

hep-th

Higher point MHV amplitudes in N=4 Supersymmetric Yang-Mills Theory

We compute the even part of the two-loop seven-point planar MHV amplitude in N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory. We find that the even part is expressed in terms of conformal integrals with simple rational coefficients. We also compute the even part of two all-n cuts. An important feature of the result is that no hexagon (or higher polygon) loops appear among the integrals detected by the cuts we computed. We also present a "leg addition rule," which allows us to express some integral coefficients in the n+1-point MHV amplitude in terms of the integral coefficients of the n-point MHV amplitude.

hep-th

Twistors, strings and supersymmetric gauge theories

This thesis is concerned with the study of scattering amplitudes in four-dimensional conformal field theories, more particularly the N=4 super-Yang-Mills theory. We study this theory first at tree level by using twistor space techniques and review the twistor string models that were proposed to describe it. Then, we turn to the issue of iteration relations and all loop ansatze for scattering amplitudes. We review the unitarity method for computing scattering amplitudes and discuss the Wilson loop--scattering amplitude duality that was inspired by the strong-coupling prescription of Alday and Maldacena for scattering amplitudes. We describe in some detail the computation of a two-loop six-point scattering amplitude and its surprising equality to the polygonal Wilson loop.

hep-th

The Two-Loop Six-Gluon MHV Amplitude in Maximally Supersymmetric Yang-Mills Theory

We give a representation of the parity-even part of the planar two-loop six-gluon MHV amplitude of N=4 super-Yang-Mills theory, in terms of loop-momentum integrals with simple dual conformal properties. We evaluate the integrals numerically in order to test directly the ABDK/BDS all-loop ansatz for planar MHV amplitudes. We find that the ansatz requires an additive remainder function, in accord with previous indications from strong-coupling and Regge limits. The planar six-gluon amplitude can also be compared with the hexagonal Wilson loop computed by Drummond, Henn, Korchemsky and Sokatchev in arXiv:0803.1466 [hep-th]. After accounting for differing singularities and other constants independent of the kinematics, we find that the Wilson loop and MHV-amplitude remainders are identical, to within our numerical precision. This result provides non-trivial confirmation of a proposed n-point equivalence between Wilson loops and planar MHV amplitudes, and suggests that an additional mechanism besides dual conformal symmetry fixes their form at six points and beyond.

hep-th

On the Factorisation of the Connected Prescription for Yang-Mills Amplitudes

We examine factorisation in the connected prescription of Yang-Mills amplitudes. The multi-particle pole is interpreted as coming from representing delta functions as meromorphic functions. However, a naive evaluation does not give a correct result. We give a simple prescription for the integration contour which does give the correct result. We verify this prescription for a family of gauge-fixing conditions.

hep-th