High Energy Theory Seminar

Conformal field theories (CFTs) defined at fixed points of the
renormalization group flow can be lifted to curved space where they develop
the well-known trace anomaly. In this talk we will consider the trace
anomaly of CFTs with exactly marginal operators. The couplings that source
the marginal operators are promoted to spacetime-dependent functions, and
new terms, proportional to derivatives of the couplings, appear in the trace
anomaly. We will analyze these contributions in four and six spacetime
dimensions, and illustrate their relevance to the a-theorem and the
relation between scale and conformal invariance. The six-dimensional case
displays novel features not seen in lower dimensions.