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J. Baacke

Publications and source records attributed to J. Baacke.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2007

Quantum back-reaction of the superpartners in a large-N supersymmetric hybrid model

We study the supersymmetric hybrid model near and after the end of inflation. As usual, we reduce the model to a purely scalar hybrid model on the level of the classical fields. But on the level of quantum fluctuations and their backreaction we take into account all superpartners of the waterfall field in a large-N approximation. The evolution after slow roll displays two phases with a different characteristic behaviour of the classical and fluctuation fields. We find that the fluctuations of the pseudoscalar superpartner are of particular importance in the late time phase. The motion of the waterfall field towards its classical expectation value is found to be very slow and suggests a rather flat potential and a stochastic force.

hep-th↗
arXiv2006

Tunneling in a quantum field theory on a compact one-dimensional space

We compute tunneling in a quantum field theory in 1+1 dimensions for a field potential $U(Φ)$ of the asymmetric double well type. The system is localized initially in the ``false vacuum''. We consider the case of a {\em compact space} ($S_1$) and study {\em global} tunneling. The process is studied in real-time simulations. The computation is based on the time-dependent Hartree-Fock variational principle with a product {\em ansatz} for the wave functions of the various normal modes. While the wave functions of the nonzero momentum modes are treated within the Gaussian approximation, the wave function of the zero mode that tunnels between the two wells is not restricted to be Gaussian, but evolves according to a standard Schrödinger equation. We find that in general tunneling occurs in a resonant way, the resonances being associated with degeneracies of the approximate levels in the two separated wells. If the nonzero momentum modes of the quantum field are excited only weakly, the phenomena resemble those of quantum mechanics with the wave function of the zero mode oscillating forth and back between the wells. If the nonzero momentum modes are excited efficiently, they react back onto the zero mode causing an effective dissipation. In some region of parameter space this back-reaction causes the potential barrier to disappear temporarily or definitely, the tunneling towards the ``true vacuum'' is then replaced by a sliding of the wave function.

hep-th↗
arXiv2003

O(N) linear sigma model beyond the Hartree approximation at finite temperature

We study the O(N) linear sigma model with spontaneous symmetry breaking at finite temperature in the framework of the two-particle point-irreducible (2PPI) effective action. We go beyond the Hartree approximation by including the two-loop contribution, i.e., the sunset diagram. A phase transition of second order is found, whereas it is of first order in the one-loop Hartree approximation. Furthermore, we show the temperature-dependence of the variational mass parameters and comment on their relation to the physical sigma and pion masses.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2003

The O(N) linear sigma model at finite temperature beyond the Hartree approximation

We study the O(N) linear sigma model with spontaneous symmetry breaking, using a Hartree-like ansatz with a classical field and variational masses. We go beyond the Hartree approximation by including the two-loop contribution, the sunset diagram, using the 2PPI expansion. We have computed numerically the effective potential at finite temperature. We find a phase transition of second order, while it is first order in the Hartree approximation. We also discuss some implications of the fact that in this order, the decay of the sigma into two pions affects the thermal diagrams.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2001

Nonequilibrium evolution in scalar O(N) models with spontaneous symmetry breaking

We consider the out-of-equilibrium evolution of a classical condensate field and its quantum fluctuations for a scalar O(N) model with spontaneously broken symmetry. In contrast to previous studies we do not consider the large N limit, but the case of finite N, including N=1, i.e., plain $λϕ^ 4$ theory. The instabilities encountered in the one-loop approximation are prevented, as in the large-N limit, by back reaction of the fluctuations on themselves, or, equivalently, by including a resummation of bubble diagrams. For this resummation and its renormalization we use formulations developed recently based on the effective action formalism of Cornwall, Jackiw and Tomboulis. The formulation of renormalized equations for finite N derived here represents a useful tool for simulations with realistic models. Here we concentrate on the phase structure of such models. We observe the transition between the spontaneously broken and the symmetric phase at low and high energy densities, respectively. This shows that the typical structures expected in thermal equilibrium are encountered in nonequilibrium dynamics even at early times, i.e., before an efficient rescattering can lead to thermalization.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2001

Out of Equilibrium Dynamics of Supersymmetry at High Energy Density

We investigate the out of equilibrium dynamics of global chiral supersymmetry at finite energy density. We concentrate on two specific models. The first is the massive Wess-Zumino model which we study in a selfconsistent one-loop approximation. We find that for energy densities above a certain threshold, the fields are driven dynamically to a point in field space at which the fermionic component of the superfield is massless. The state, however is found to be unstable, indicating a breakdown of the one-loop approximation. To investigate further, we consider an O(N) massive chiral model which is solved exactly in the large $N$ limit. For sufficiently high energy densities, we find that for late times the fields reach a nonperturbative minimum of the effective potential degenerate with the perturbative minimum. This minimum is a true attractor for O(N) invariant states at high energy densities, and this provides a mechanism for determining which of the otherwise degenerate vacua is chosen by the dynamics. The final state for large energy density is a cloud of massless particles (both bosons and fermions) around this new nonperturbative supersymmetric minimum. By introducing boson masses which softly break the supersymmetry, we demonstrate a see-saw mechanism for generating small fermion masses. We discuss some of the cosmological implications of our results.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2001

Dynamics of O(N) chiral supersymmetry at finite energy density

We consider an O(N) version of a massive, interacting, chiral supersymmetry model solved exactly in the large N limit. We demonstrate that the system approaches a stable attractor at high energy densities, corresponding to a non-perturbative state for which the relevant field quanta are massless. The state is one of spontaneously broken O(N), which, due to the influence of supersymmetry, does not become restored at high energies. Introducing soft supersymmetry breaking to the Lagrangian results in scalar masses at the soft breaking scale m_s independent of the mass scale of supersymmetry mu, with even smaller masses for the fermions.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2001

Parton distributions in the chiral quark model: a continuum computation

We compute the parton distributions for the chiral quark model. We present a new technique for performing such computations based on Green functions. This approach avoids a discretization of the spectrum. It therefore does not need any smoothing procedures. The results are similar to those of other groups, however the distributions peak at smaller $x$.

hep-ph↗
arXiv2000

Nonequilibrium evolution and symmetry structure of the large-N $Φ^4$ model at finite temperature

We consider the large-N $Φ^4$ theory with spontaneously broken symmetry at finite temperature. We study, in the large-N limit, quantum states which are characterized by a time dependent, spatially homogenous expectation value of one of the field components, $ϕ_N(t)$, and by quantum fluctuations of the other $N-1$ components, that evolve in the background of the classical field. Investigating such systems out of equilibrium has recently been shown to display several interesting features. We extend here this type of investigations to finite temperature systems. Essentially the novel features observed at T=0 carry over to finite temperature. This is not unexpected, as the main mechanisms that determine the late-time behavior remain the same. We extend two empirical - presumably exact - relations for the late-time behavior to finite temperature and use them to define the boundaries between the region of different asymptotic regimes. This results in a phase diagram with the temperature and the initial value of the classical field as parameters, the phases being characterized by spontaneous symmetry breaking resp. symmetry restoration. The time evolution is computed numerically and agrees very well with the expectations.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1999

Renormalization of the nonequilibrium dynamics of fermions in a flat FRW universe

We derive the renormalized equations of motion and the renormalized energy-momentum tensor for fermions coupled to a spatially homogeneous scalar field (inflaton) in a flat FRW geometry. The fermion back reaction to the metric and to the inflaton field is formulated in one-loop approximation. Having determined the infinite counter terms in an $\bar{MS}$ scheme we formulate the finite terms in a form suitable for numerical computation. We comment on the trace anomaly which is inferred from the standard analysis. We also address the problem of initial singularities and determine the Bogoliubov transformation by which they are removed.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1999

Gauge invariance of the one-loop effective action of the Higgs field in the SU(2) Higgs model

The one-loop effective action of the abelian and nonabelian Higgs models has been studied in various gauges, in the context of instanton and sphaleron transition, bubble nucleation and most recently in nonequilibrium dynamics. Gauge invariance is expected on account of Nielsen' s theorem, if the classical background field is an extremum of the classical action, i.e., a solution of the classical equation of motion. We substantiate this general statement for the one-loop effective action, as computed using mode functions. We show that in the gauge-Higgs sector there are two types of modes that satisfy the same equation of motion as the Faddeev-Popov modes. We apply the general analysis to the computation of the fluctuation determinant for bubble nucleation in the SU(2) Higgs model in the 't Hooft gauge with general gauge parameter $ξ$. We show that due to the cancellation of the modes mentioned above the fluctuation determinant is independent of $ξ$.

hep-th↗
arXiv1999

Initial Time Singularities in Non-Equilibrium Evolution of Condensates and Their Resolution in the Linearized Approximation

The real time non-equilibrium evolution of condensates in field theory requires an initial value problem specifying an initial quantum state or density matrix. Arbitrary specifications of the initial quantum state (pure or mixed) results in initial time singularities which are not removed by the usual renormalization counterterms. We study the initial time singularities in the linearized equation of motion for the scalar condensate in a renormalizable Yukawa theory in 3+1 dimensions. In this renormalizable theory the initial time singularities are enhanced. We present a consistent method for removing these initial time singularities by specifying initial states where the distribution of high energy quanta is determined by the initial conditions and the interaction effects. This is done through a Bogoliubov transformation which is consistently obtained in a perturbative expansion.The usual renormalization counterterms and the proper choice of the Bogoliubov coefficients lead to a singularity free evolution equation. We establish the relationship between the evolution equations in the linearized approximation and linear response theory. It is found that only a very specific form of the external source for linear response leads to a real time evolution equation which is singularity free. We focus on the evolution of spatially inhomogeneous scalar condensates by implementing the initial state preparation via a Bogoliubov transformation up to one-loop. As a concrete application, the evolution equation for an inhomogenous condensate is solved analytically and the results are carefully analyzed. Symmetry breaking by initial quantum states is discussed.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1999

Out-of-equilibrium evolution of scalar fields in FRW cosmology: renormalization and numerical simulations

We present a renormalized computational framework for the evolution of a self-interacting scalar field (inflaton) and its quantum fluctuations in an FRW background geometry. We include a coupling of the field to the Ricci scalar with a general coupling parameter $ξ$. We take into account the classical and quantum back reactions, i.e., we consider the the dynamical evolution of the cosmic scale factor. We perform, in the one-loop and in the large-N approximation, the renormalization of the equation of motion for the inflaton field, and of its energy momentum tensor. Our formalism is based on a perturbative expansion for the mode functions, and uses dimensional regularization. The renormalization procedure is manifestly covariant and the counter terms are independent of the initial state. Some shortcomings in the renormalization of the energy-momentum tensor in an earlier publication are corrected. We avoid the occurence of initial singularities by constructing a suitable class of initial states. The formalism is implemented numerically and we present some results for the evolution in the post-inflationary preheating era.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1999

The nucleon in the chiral quark model: an alternative computation scheme

We formulate the quark sea contributions to the energy and various physical observables in terms of Euclidean Green functions and their K-spin partial wave reduction. In this framework it is not necessary to discretize the continuous spectrum by introducing a finite boundary. Using this formulation we perform a new self-consistent computation of the nucleon state in the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model. Besides this technical advantage such an alternative computation scheme makes it possible to obtain the numerical predictions of the model in an entirely independent way. We use the Pauli-Villars cutoff to define the model. Our results for the nucleon energy, the mesonic profile, and various observables essentially confirm results obtained by other groups using this regularization. The results for $g\sub{A}$, obtained on the basis of quark currents, are close to the experimental value.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1995

Computing numerically the functional derivative of an effective action

The functional derivative of the effective action with respect to an external field is part of the equation of motion of this field if one-loop effects induced by quantum fluctuations or thermal fluctuations are included when minimizing the action of this field. Examples occur in all field theories displaying classical solutions or - as in the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model - self consistent field configurations. We describe here a numerical method for computing such functional derivatives; we use a fermion field with Yukawa interaction to an external field as an example which is sufficiently simple and sufficiently general. We compare the computed functional derivative to analytical estimates.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1995

Fermionic fluctuation corrections to bubble nucleation

We determine the fermionic corrections to the nucleation rate of bubbles at the electroweak phase transition. The fermion determinant is evaluated exactly and by using the gradient expansion. The gradient expansion is found to be a reliable approximation and is used to extrapolate to the large values of $ν_n = (2n+1)πT$ needed in the Matsubara sum. The contribution to effective action is found to be negative and to be given, essentially, by the gradient terms, the finite part of the wave function renormalization. Only the top quark contribution is evaluated, it is of the same order as the Higgs- and W-boson contributions found previously, but of opposite sign.

hep-ph↗
arXiv1995

Fluctuation corrections to bubble nucleation

The fluctuation determinant which determines the preexponential factor of the transition rate for minimal bubbles is computed for the electroweak theory with $\sin Θ_W = 0$. As the basic action we use the three-dimensional high-temperature action including, besides temperature dependent masses, the $T Φ^3$ one-loop contribution which makes the phase transition first order. The results show that this contribution (which has then to be subtracted from the exact result) gives the dominant contribution to the one-loop effective action. The remaining correction is of the order of, but in general larger than the critical bubble action and suppresses the transition rate. The results for the Higgs field fluctuations are compared with those of an approximate heat kernel computation of Kripfganz et al., good agreement is found for small bubbles, strong deviations for large thin-wall bubbles.

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