Gauge dependence identities and their application at finite temperature

Nov, 1990
37 pages
Published in:
  • Nucl.Phys.B 355 (1991) 1-37
  • Published: 1991
Report number:
  • CERN-TH-5937-90

Citations per year

1991200020092018202505101520
Abstract: (Elsevier)
We derive a general set of identities that determine the gauge dependence of the effective action and all associated n -point vertex functions in a wide class of gauge theories. These identities are then used to resolve the recent controversy concerning the dispersion relations in high-temperature QCD and quantum gravity. In particular, we show that the leading temperature contributions to all vertex functions in QCD, and the 1- and 2-point functions in gravity are gauge covariant and gauge fixing independent. Beyond leading order we establish gauge independence of the QCD plasma dispersion relations and show how gauge-independent dispersion relations can in principle be extracted from the thermal curved-space graviton propagator.
  • gauge field theory: Yang-Mills
  • quantum gravity
  • effective action
  • finite temperature
  • dependence: gauge
  • n-point function
  • quantum chromodynamics
  • dispersion relation
  • background field
  • transformation: Becchi-Rouet-Stora