PU High Energy Theory Seminar
Higgs-Confinement Transitions in QCD from Symmetry Protected Topological Phases
Abstract: In gauge theories with fundamental matter, such as QCD, there is typically no sharp way to distinguish confining and Higgs regimes because there are no suitable order parameters. It is standard lore that these two regimes are continuously connected. In this talk I will discuss simple examples in which Higgsing and confinement lead to different symmetry protected topological (SPT) phases, which are necessarily separated by a phase transition. Finally, I will show that this phenomenon also occurs in QCD at finite baryon density (but zero temperature), and comment on possible implications for the QCD phase diagram and neutron stars.
Date & Time
March 22, 2024 | 11:00am – 12:15pm
Location
Jadwin Hall, PCTS Room 407 & ZoomSpeakers
Thomas Dumitrescu, University of California, Los Angeles
Additional Info
Event Series
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This seminar will also be available on Zoom:
https://princeton.zoom.us/j/6603200624