arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Denjoe O'Connor.
We compare the bosonic and maximally supersymmetric membrane models. We find that in Hoppe regulated form the bosonic membrane is well approximated by massive Gaussian quantum matrix models. In contrast the similarly regulated supersymmetric membrane, which is equivalent to the BFSS model, has a gravity dual description. We sketch recent progress in checking gauge/gravity duality in this context.
We study a quantum system of $p$ commuting matrices and find that such a quantum system requires an explicit curvature dependent potential in its Lagrangian for the system to have a finite energy ground state. In contrast it is possible to avoid such curvature dependence in the Hamiltonian. We study the eigenvalue distribution for such systems in the large matrix size limit. A critical rôle is played by $p=4$. For $p\ge4$ the competition between eigenvalue repulsion and the attractive potential forces the eigenvalues to form a sharp spherical shell.
We perform a systematic study of commutative $SO(p)$ invariant matrix models with quadratic and quartic potentials in the large $N$ limit. We find that the physics of these systems depends crucially on the number of matrices with a critical rôle played by $p=4$. For $p\leq4$ the system undergoes a phase transition accompanied by a topology change transition. For $p> 4$ the system is always in the topologically non-trivial phase and the eigenvalue distribution is a Dirac delta function spherical shell. We verify our analytic work with Monte Carlo simulations.
We study a multi-matrix model whose low temperature phase is a fuzzy sphere that undergoes an evaporation transition as the temperature is increased. We investigate finite size scaling of the system as the limiting temperature of stability of the fuzzy sphere phase is approached. We find on theoretical grounds that the system should obey scaling with specific heat exponent α=1/2, shift exponent \bar λ=4/3 and that the peak in the specific heat grows with exponent \bar ω=2/3. Using hybrid Monte Carlo simulations we find good collapse of specific heat data consistent with a scaling ansatz which give our best estimates for the scaling exponents as α=0.50 \pm 0.01,\bar λ=1.41 \pm 0.08 and \bar ω=0.66 \pm 0.08 .
We investigate the radial extent of the eigenvalue distribution for Yang-Mills type matrix models. We show that, a three matrix Gaussian model with complex Myers coupling, to leading order in strong coupling is described by commuting matrices whose joint eigenvalue distribution is uniform and confined to a ball of radius R=(3Pi/2g)^(1/3). We then study, perturbatively, a 3-component model with a pure commutator action and find a radial extent broadly consistent with numerical simulations.
The eigenvalue distribution of Hoppe's two matrix model is investigated in detail as a function of the model's coupling. For small couplings it is a perturbed Wigner semicircle, while for large couplings it is a parabolic distribution which crosses over to a Wigner semicircle for eigenvalues within approximatley an inverse coupling from the boundary of the distribution. The model is approximately commuting at large couplings and we find the joint eigenvalue distribution of the two matrices. We also study a related three matrix model finding the corresponding three dimensional eigenvalue distribution there also. The techniques developed here are more widely applicable to other multi-matrix models.
We present a manifestly Spin(5) invariant construction of squashed fuzzy $CP^3$ as a fuzzy $S^2$ bundle over fuzzy $S^4$. We develop the necessary projectors and exhibit the squashing in terms of the radii of the $S^2$ and $S^4$. Our analysis allows us give both scalar and spinor fuzzy action functionals whose low lying modes are truncated versions of those of a commutative $S^4$.
We study a two parameter single trace 3-matrix model with SO(3) global symmetry. The model has two phases, a fuzzy sphere phase and a matrix phase. Configurations in the matrix phase are consistent with fluctuations around a background of commuting matrices whose eigenvalues are confined to the interior of a ball of radius R=2.0. We study the co-existence curve of the model and find evidence that it has two distinct portions one with a discontinuous internal energy yet critical fluctuations of the specific heat but only on the low temperature side of the transition and the other portion has a continuous internal energy with a discontinuous specific heat of finite jump. We study in detail the eigenvalue distributions of different observables.
Using Environmentally Friendly Renormalization, we present an analytic calculation of the series for the renormalization constants that describe the equation of state for the $O(N)$ model in the whole critical region. The solution of the beta-function equation, for the running coupling to order two loops, exhibits crossover between the strong coupling fixed point, associated with the Goldstone modes, and the Wilson-Fisher fixed point. The Wilson functions $γ_λ$, $γ_ϕ$ and $γ_{ϕ^2}$, and thus the effective critical exponents associated with renormalization of the transverse vertex functions, also exhibit non-trivial crossover between these fixed points.
We show that the zero temperature phase diagram of the vortex free sector of the Kitaev model is in one to one correspondence with that of the classical dimer model on the same lattice. We find that the model generically has three distinct phases. On a honeycomb lattice with a $3\times3$ fundamental domain all three phases are accessible. As the couplings are varied there are two distinct transitions. The new transition is one to a gapped phase that opens up in the interior of the $B$ phase.
We present, theoretical predictions and Monte Carlo simulations, for a simple three matrix model that exhibits an exotic phase transition. The nature of the transition is very different if approached from the high or low temperature side. The high temperature phase is described by three self interacting random matrices with no background spacetime geometry. As the system cools there is a phase transition in which a classical two-sphere condenses to form the background geometry. The transition has an entropy jump or latent heat, yet the specific heat diverges as the transition is approached from low temperatures. We find no divergence or evidence of critical fluctuations when the transition is approached from the high temperature phase. At sufficiently low temperatures the system is described by small fluctuations, on a background classical two-sphere, of a U(1) gauge field coupled to a massive scalar field. The critical temperature is pushed upwards as the scalar field mass is increased. Once the geometrical phase is well established the specific heat takes the value 1 with the gauge and scalar fields each contributing 1/2.
The phi^4 real scalar field theory on a fuzzy sphere is studied numerically. We refine the phase diagram for this model where three distinct phases are known to exist: a uniformly ordered phase, a disordered phase, and a non-uniform ordered phase where the spatial SO(3) symmetry of the round sphere is spontaneously broken and which has no classical equivalent. The three coexistence lines between these phases, which meet at a triple point, are carefully located with particular attention paid to the one between the two ordered phases and the triple point itself. In the neighbourhood of the triple point all phase boundaries are well approximated by straight lines which, surprisingly, have the same scaling. We argue that unless an additional term is added to enhance the effect of the kinetic term the infinite matrix limit of this model will not correspond to a real scalar field on the commutative sphere or plane.
Using an Environmentally Friendly Renormalization Group we derive an ab initio universal scaling form for the equation of state for the O(N) model, y=f(x), that exhibits all required analyticity properties in the limits $x\to 0$, $x\to\infty$ and $x\to -1$. Unlike current methodologies based on a phenomenological scaling ansatz the scaling function is derived solely from the underlying Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson Hamiltonian and depends only on the three Wilson functions $γ_λ$, $γ_ϕ$ and $γ_{ϕ^2}$ which exhibit a non-trivial crossover between the Wilson-Fisher fixed point and the strong coupling fixed point associated with the Goldstone modes on the coexistence curve. We give explicit results for N=2, 3 and 4 to one-loop order and compare with known results.
We demonstrate that the classical dimer model defined on a toroidal hexagonal lattice acquires holonomy phases in the thermodynamic limit. When all activities are equal the lattice sizes must be considered mod 6 in which case the finite size corrections to the bulk partition function correspond to a massless Dirac Fermion in the presence of a flat connection with nontrivial holonomy. For general bond activities we find that the phase transition in this model is a topological one, where the torus degenerates and its modular parameter becomes real at the critical temperature. We argue that these features are generic to bipartite dimer models and we present a more general lattice whose continuum partition function is that of a massive Dirac Fermion.
We present a universal Dirac operator for noncommutative spin and spin^c bundles over fuzzy complex projective spaces. We give an explicit construction of these bundles, which are described in terms of finite dimensional matrices, calculate the spectrum and explicitly exhibit the Dirac eigenspinors. To our knowledge the spin^c spectrum for CP^n with n>=3 is new.
We generalise the construction of fuzzy CP^N in a manner that allows us to access all noncommutative equivariant complex vector bundles over this space. We give a simplified construction of polarization tensors on S^2 that generalizes to complex projective space, identify Laplacians and natural noncommutative covariant derivative operators that map between the modules that describe noncommuative sections. In the process we find a natural generalization of the Schwinger-Jordan construction to su(n) and identify composite oscillators that obey a Heisenberg algebra on an appropriate Fock space.
We study a three matrix model with global SO(3) symmetry containing at most quartic powers of the matrices. We find an exotic line of discontinuous transitions with a jump in the entropy, characteristic of a 1st order transition, yet with divergent critical fluctuations and a divergent specific heat with critical exponent $α=1/2$. The low temperature phase is a geometrical one with gauge fields fluctuating on a round sphere. As the temperature increased the sphere evaporates in a transition to a pure matrix phase with no background geometrical structure. Both the geometry and gauge fields are determined dynamically. It is not difficult to invent higher dimensional models with essentially similar phenomenology. The model presents an appealing picture of a geometrical phase emerging as the system cools and suggests a scenario for the emergence of geometry in the early universe.
We regularise the 3d λϕ^4 model by discretising the Euclidean time and representing the spatial part on a fuzzy sphere. The latter involves a truncated expansion of the field in spherical harmonics. This yields a numerically tractable formulation, which constitutes an unconventional alternative to the lattice. In contrast to the 2d version, the radius R plays an independent rôle. We explore the phase diagram in terms of R and the cutoff, as well as the parameters m^2 and λ. Thus we identify the phases of disorder, uniform order and non-uniform order. We compare the result to the phase diagrams of the 3d model on a non-commutative torus, and of the 2d model on a fuzzy sphere. Our data at strong coupling reproduce accurately the behaviour of a matrix chain, which corresponds to the c=1-model in string theory. This observation enables a conjecture about the thermodynamic limit.