Effective strings in QED3_{3}

Dec 2, 2024
46 pages
Published in:
  • JHEP 03 (2025) 143
  • Published: Mar 19, 2025
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Abstract: (Springer)
Effective string theory describes the physics of long confining strings in theories, like Yang-Mills theory, where the mass gap Mgap2 {M}_{\textrm{gap}}^2 is of the same order as the string tension T. In 2 + 1 dimensions, there is a class of confining theories, including massive QED3_{3} as first analyzed by Polyakov, for which Mgap2 {M}_{\textrm{gap}}^2 ≪ T. These theories are weakly coupled at low energies of order Mgap_{gap}, and may be analyzed perturbatively. In this paper, we analyze the physics of strings in such theories, focusing on QED3_{3}, at energies of order Mgap_{gap} (but still well below T \sqrt{T} ). We argue that the width of the string in these theories should be of order 1/Mgap_{gap} independently of its length, as long as the string is not exponentially long. We also compute at leading order in perturbation theory the ground state energy of a confining string on a circle, and the scattering of Nambu-Goldstone bosons on the string worldsheet.
Note:
  • 46 pages + appendices, 3 figures. v2: 47 pages + appendices, 3 figures. Conclusion section was added. Prepared for submission to JHEP
  • Confinement
  • Effective Field Theories
  • Renormalization and Regularization