arXiv subjects

Y. Bergner

Publications and source records attributed to Y. Bergner.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2003

The self-consistent bounce: an improved nucleation rate

We generalize the standard computation of homogeneous nucleation theory at zero temperature to a scenario in which the bubble shape is determined self-consistently with its quantum fluctuations. Studying two scalar models in 1+1 dimensions, we find the self-consistent bounce by employing a two-particle irreducible (2PI) effective action in imaginary time at the level of the Hartree approximation. We thus obtain an effective single bounce action which determines the rate exponent. We use collective coordinates to account for the translational invariance and the growth instability of the bubble and finally present a new nucleation rate prefactor. We compare the results with those obtained using the standard 1-loop approximation and show that the self-consistent rate can differ by several orders of magnitude.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2003

Dressing Up the Kink

Many quantum field theoretical models possess non-trivial solutions which are stable for topological reasons. We construct a self-consistent example for a self-interacting scalar field--the quantum (or dressed) kink--using a two particle irreducible effective action in the Hartree approximation. This new solution includes quantum fluctuations determined self-consistently and nonperturbatively at the 1-loop resummed level and allowed to backreact on the classical mean-field profile. This dressed kink is static under the familiar Hartree equations for the time evolution of quantum fields. Because the quantum fluctuation spectrum is lower lying in the presence of the defect, the quantum kink has a lower rest energy than its classical counterpart. However its energy is higher than well-known strict 1-loop results, where backreaction and fluctuation self-interactions are omitted. We also show that the quantum kink exists at finite temperature and that its profile broadens as temperature is increased until it eventually disappears.

hep-th↗

arXiv2002

A Step Beyond the Bounce: Bubble Dynamics in Quantum Phase Transitions

We study the dynamical evolution of a phase interface or bubble in the context of a λϕ^4 + g ϕ^6 scalar quantum field theory. We use a self-consistent mean-field approximation derived from a 2PI effective action to construct an initial value problem for the expectation value of the quantum field and two-point function. We solve the equations of motion numerically in (1+1)-dimensions and compare the results to the purely classical evolution. We find that the quantum fluctuations dress the classical profile, affecting both the early time expansion of the bubble and the behavior upon collision with a neighboring interface.

hep-ph↗

arXiv2001

Integrable Supersymmetric Fluid Mechanics from Superstrings

Following the construction of a model for the planar supersymmetric Chaplygin gas, supersymmetric fluid mechanics in (1+1)-dimensions is obtained from the light-cone parametrized Nambu-Goto superstring in (2+1)-dimensions. The lineal model is completely integrable and can be formulated neatly using Riemann coordinates. Infinite towers of conserved charges and supercharges are exhibited. They form irreducible representations of a dynamical (hidden) SO(2,1) symmetry group.

physics.flu-dyn↗