Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Effective field theory; QCD; lattice QCD'

Einer der finalen Schritte in Simulationen von Gitter Quantenchromodynamik (QCD) oder Gittereichtheorie ist die Kontinuumsextrapolation, um die eigentliche Kontinuumsphysik zu extrahieren. Diese Extrapolation beruht stark auf Annahmen über die asymptotische Abhängigkeit vom Gitterabstand, was zu systematischen Unsicherheiten des Kontinuumslimes führt. In klassischen Feldtheorien ist die asymptotische Form schlicht eine Potenzreihe im Gitterabstand, wobei die führende Potenz von der gewählten Diskretisierung auf dem Gitter abhängt. Die Quantenkorrekturen in Gitter QCD und Gittereichtheorie brechen dieses Verhalten. Für asymptotisch freie Theorien wie Gitter QCD werden die ganzzahligen Potenzen im Gitterabstand mit einer Potenz der laufenden Kopplung multipliziert. Die führenden Potenzen in der Kopplung lassen sich wiederum aus den anomalen Dimensionen von höher-dimensionalen Operatoren bestimmen, die eine Basis für eine Symanzik Effektiven Feldtheorie bilden. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit werden die führenden Potenzen in der Kopplung für die Wilson oder Ginsparg-Wilson (GW) Wirkung bestimmt, die für spektrale Größen wie Hadronmassen beitragen. Die untere Schranke des Spektrums dieser Potenzen liegt nahe null für Gitter QCD mit Wilson oder GW Quarks, weshalb keine Probleme durch eine verschlechterte Konvergenz zum Kontinuumslimes zu erwarten sind. Allerdings ist das Spektrum der führenden Potenzen sehr dicht. Dadurch lässt sich der Operator der minimalen Basis mit dominierendem Beitrag zu den Gitterartefakten schlecht bestimmen und ein kompliziertes Zusammenspiel der verschiedenen Beiträge zu den Gitterartefakten ist möglich. Nun, da die führenden Korrekturen der Gitterwirkungen mit Wilson und GW Quarks zur klassischen Potenz im Gitterabstand bekannt sind, sollten diese für die Kontinuumsextrapolation genutzt werden, sowohl für den Ansatz der Extrapolationsfunktion als auch als Orientierungshilfe, um die inhärente systematische Unsicherheit des Kontinuumslimes abzuschätzen.
One of the final steps in simulations of lattice Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) or lattice pure gauge theory is the continuum extrapolation to extract the actual continuum physics. This extrapolation relies heavily on assumptions regarding the asymptotic dependence on the lattice spacing, which introduces an inherent systematic uncertainty to the continuum limit. In classical field theories the asymptotic form is a power series in the lattice spacing, where the leading power depends on the chosen lattice discretisation. The quantum nature of lattice QCD and lattice pure gauge theory spoils this behaviour. For asymptotically free theories like lattice QCD the integer powers in the lattice spacing are multiplied by an additional power in the running coupling. The leading powers in the coupling can be determined from the anomalous dimensions of higher dimensional operators, which form a minimal basis of a Symanzik Effective theory. The scope of this thesis is to compute the leading powers in the coupling for the Wilson or Ginsparg-Wilson (GW) action relevant for spectral quantities like hadron masses. The lower bound of these powers is close to zero for lattice QCD with Wilson or GW quarks such that no problems from a reduced convergence towards the continuum limit are to be expected. However the spectrum of leading powers is very dense. The operator of the minimal basis with dominant contributions to the lattice artifacts is thus hard to determine and complicated interplay of the contributions from the various operators is possible. Now the leading corrections from lattice actions with Wilson or GW quarks to the classical power in the lattice spacing are known and should be used when performing the continuum extrapolation both through explicit use in the fit ansatz and as an orientation to estimate the systematic uncertainty inherent to the continuum limit.

Eine zusammenfassende Übersicht über die Formulierung der chiralen Störungstheorie (ChPT) für die Gitter Quantenchromodynamik (QCD) ist gegeben. Wir beginnen mit kurzen Zusammenfassungen der chiralen Störungstheorie für die Kontinuum-QCD sowie Symanziks effektiver Theorie für die Gitter-QCD. Anschließend wird die Formulierung der ChPT für die Gitter-QCD behandelt. Nach einem weiteren Kapitel über partial quenching und Theorien mit gemischten Wirkungen werden konkrete Anwendungen diskutiert: Wilson ChPT, staggered ChPT sowie Wilson ChPT mit einem chiral verdrehten Massenterm. Die folgenden Kapitel behandeln das Epsilonregime mit Wilsonfermionen sowie ausgewählte Resultate für ChPT mit gemischten Wirkungen. Den Abschluß bildet die Formulierung der chiralen Störungstheorie für schwere Vektormesonen mit Wilsonfermionen.
The formulation of chiral perturbation theory (ChPT) for lattice Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) is reviewed. We start with brief summaries of ChPT for continuum QCD as well as the Symanzik effective theory for lattice QCD. We then review the formulation of ChPT for lattice QCD. After an additional chapter on partial quenching and mixed action theories various concrete applications are discussed: Wilson ChPT, staggered ChPT and Wilson ChPT with a twisted mass term. The remaining chapters deal with the epsilon regime with Wilson fermions and selected results in mixed action ChPT. Finally, the formulation of heavy vector meson ChPT with Wilson fermions is discussed.

La masse est une des propriétés les plus fondamentales de la matière. Comprendre son origine a longtemps été un sujet central en physique. D'après la physique nucléaire et la physique des particules modernes, la clef de ce problème réside dans la compréhension de l’origine de la masse du nucléon à partir de l’interaction forte. Avec le développement des technologies informatiques, la chromodynamique quantique sur réseau offre la possibilité de comprendre l’origine de la masse à partir des premiers principes. Cependant, dû aux ressources de calcul limitées, les masses obtenues à partir des calculs sur réseau doivent être extrapolées jusqu'au point physique. La théorie chirale des perturbations en tant que théorie effective des champs de QCD à basse énergie est une méthode indépendante de modèle permettant de comprendre l’interaction forte dans la région non perturbative et de guider les diverses extrapolations nécessaires pour passer du résultat lattice au résultat physique. Le but de cette thèse est donc d'utiliser la complémentarité entre QCD sur réseau et théorie chirale des perturbations afin d'étudier de façon systématique les masses des baryons. Nous étudions les masses de l'octet baryonique le plus léger dans le cadre de la théorie chirale covariante des perturbations pour les baryons. Nous utilisons la méthode "extended on mass shell" jusqu'à l'ordre trois fois sous dominant. Afin d'étudier les artefacts des calculs sur réseau dus à la taille finie de la boîte nous calculons les effets de volume fini. Adaptant la théorie chirale des perturbations à des fermions de Wilson nous obtenons aussi les effets de discrétisation dû au pas fini du réseau. Nous étudions de façon systématique toutes les données réseau en tenant à la fois de l'extrapolation au continu, des corrections de volume finie et de l'extrapolation chirale. Nous démontrons l'importance des corrections de volume fini dans la description des masses des baryons sur réseau. Par contre les effets de discrétisation sont de l'ordre de 1% jusqu'à l'ordre a² et peuvent donc être ignorés. De plus nous trouvons que toutes les données sur réseau prises en sont consistentes entre elles malgré des différences notables dans les procédures adoptées. Utilisant les formules chirales des masses des baryons nous prédisons de façon précise leurs termes sigma via le théorème de Feynman-Hellmann en analysant les données sur réseau les plus récentes. Les effets dus au pas du réseau, à la troncation de la série de perturbation chirale et à la violation d'isospin de l'interaction forte sont pris en pour la première fois. En particulier le terme sigma pion nucléon et le « strangeness sigma term » sont en accord avec les résultats réseau les plus récents. Au vue des succès rencontrés lors de l'étude de l'octet baryonique nous avons fait une analyse systématique des masses du décuplet baryonique le plus léger dans la théorie chirale covariante des perturbations pour les baryons en fittant de façon simultanée les données réseau n_f=2+1. Une bonne description à la fois des données réseau et des masses expérimentales est obtenue. De plus les termes sigma sont prédits. Enfin comprendre le spectre d'excitation des hadrons est encore un challenge. En particulier le spectre des baryons a une structure très inhabituelle, la résonance Roper (1440) de parité positive étant plus légère que l'état de parité négative N(1535). La plupart des études sur réseau suggère que les effets des log chiraux sont plus importants pour la masse de la Roper que pour celle des nucléons. Nous avons donc calculé la masse de cette résonance en théorie chirale des perturbations en tenant en de façon explicite des contributions du nucléon et du delta. Les contributions venant du mélange entre le nucléon et la Roper sont étudiées pour la première fois. Une première analyse de la masse de cette particule est présentée
Mass is one of the most fundamental properties of matter. Understanding its origin has long been a central topic in physics. According to modern particle and nuclear physics, the key to this issue is to understand the origin of nucleon (lowest-lying baryon) masses from the nonperturbative strong interaction. With the development of computing technologies, lattice Quantum Chromodynamics simulations provide great opportunities to understand the origin of mass from first principles. However, due to the limit of computational resources, lattice baryon masses have to be extrapolated to the physical point. Chiral perturbation theory, as an effective field theory of low-energy QCD, provides a model independent method to understand nonperturbative strong interactions and to guide the lattice multiple extrapolations. Therefore, we present the interplay between lattice QCD and chiral perturbation theory to systematically study the baryon masses. In the SU(3) sector, we study the lowest-lying octet baryon masses in covariant baryon chiral perturbation theory with the extended-on-mass-shell scheme up to next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order. In order to consider lattice artifacts from finite lattice box sizes, finite-volume corrections to lattice baryon masses are estimated. By constructing chiral perturbation theory for Wilson fermions, we also obtain the discretization effects of finite lattice spacings. We perform a systematic study of all the latest n_f=2+1 lattice data with chiral extrapolation (m_q → m_q^phys.), finite-volume corrections (V→∞), and continuum extrapolation (a→0). We find that finite-volume corrections are important to describe the present lattice baryon masses. On the other hand, the discretization effects of lattice simulations up to O(a²) are of the order 1% when a≈0.1 fm and can be safely ignored. Furthermore, we find that the lattice data from different collaborations are consistent with each other, though their setups are quite different. Using the chiral formulas of octet baryon masses, we accurately predict the octet baryon sigma terms via the Feynman-Hellmann theorem by analyzing the latest high-statistics lattice QCD data. Three key factors --- lattice scale setting effects, chiral expansion truncations and strong-interaction isospin-breaking effects --- are taken into account for the first time. In particular, the predicted pion- and strangeness-nucleon sigma terms, sigma_πN=55(1)(4) MeV and sigma_sN =27(27)(4) MeV, are consistent with the most latest lattice results of nucleon sigma terms. With the success in the study of octet baryon masses, we also present a systematic analysis of the lowest-lying decuplet baryon masses in covariant baryon chiral perturbation theory by simultaneously fitting n_f=2+1 lattice data. A good description for both the lattice and the experimental decuplet baryon masses is achieved. The convergence of covariant baryon chiral perturbation theory in the SU(3) sector is discussed. Furthermore, the pion- and strangeness-sigma terms for decuplet baryons are predicted by the Feynman-Hellmann theorem. In addition, understanding the excitation spectrum of hadrons is still a challenge, especially the first positive-parity nucleon resonance, the Roper(1440). The baryon spectrum shows a very unusual pattern that the Roper state is lower than the negative-parity state N(1535). Most lattice studies suggest that the Roper mass exhibits much larger chiral-log effects than that of the nucleon. Therefore, we calculate the Roper mass in chiral perturbation theory by explicitly including the nucleon/Delta contributions. The mixed contributions between nucleon and Roper to the baryon masses are taken into account for the first time. A first analysis of lattice Roper masses is presented

Dans cette thèse, nous nous intéressons à certains aspects concernant les phénomènes hadroniques à basse énergie sous 1 GeV, en dessous de laquelle la symétrie chirale de la Chromodynamique Quantique (QCD) est spontanément brisée. En dessous de cette échelle d'énergie, le spectre de QCD se réduit à un octet de mésons légers pseudo-scalaires (π, K and η). Mais à cause du confinement, QCD sous 1 GeV devient hautement non perturbative - il n'est donc plus possible de décrire à basse énergie la dynamique de ces mésons en termes de gluons et de quarks (ici seuls les quarks légers u, d et s sont concernés). Deux alternatives principales à cet obstacle majeur existent néanmoins: la QCD sur réseau ainsi que les Théories Effectives des Champs. La QCD sur réseau consiste à calculer de manière numériques les diverses observables hadroniques, alors que les théories effectives permettent de nouveau une approche analytique (et perturbative) adaptée à une échelle d'énergie donnée. Dans le cas de QCD à basse énergie, c'est la Théorie Chirale des Perturbations (ChiPT) qui joue le rôle de théorie effective. Cette théorie peut être construite à partir de deux saveurs de quarks légers (u et s) ou trois (u,d, et s). Il est alors possible d'utiliser certains résultats de calculs sur réseau (ainsi que certains résultats expérimentaux) afin d'extraire des valeurs numériques pour les divers paramètres libres que contient la théorie chirale. Il fut néanmoins observé que le développement en séries chirales de quelques observables hadroniques sont numériquement "malades" dans le cadre de la théorie à trois saveurs. En effet, des travaux antérieurs montrent qu'il pourrait exister une possible compétition numérique entre l'Ordre Dominant (LO) et l'Ordre Sous-Dominant (NLO): en place de la hiérarchie usuelle LO>>NLO, l'équivalence LO~NLO prévalerait. La partie principale de la thèse consiste ainsi à la description et l'utilisation d'une version alternative de ChiPT, nommée Théorie Chirale des Perturbations Ressommée (ReChiPT ). Quelques observables hadroniques de basse energie sont calculées puis étudiées dans ce cadre "ressommé", puis nous procédons à l'ajustement de certaines données de QCD sur réseau obtenues par des simulations à 2+1 quarks dynamiques sur ces observables exprimées en ReChiPT: les constantes de désintégrations et les masses de l'octet (π, K, η), ainsi que les facteurs de forme Kl3. Nous testons ensuite la validité de notre assertion concernant la possible compétition numérique observée dans les séries chirales. Enfin, dans la dernière partie, nous discutons plusieurs aspects analytiques et numériques concernant certaines quantités topologiques liées de manière intrinsèque à la très complexe structure du vide de QCD, dans le cadre de ChiPT (ressommé), et nous confrontons de nouveau cette étude à des données réseau 2+1.

Using an approach based on Soft Collinear Effective Theory (SCET) and Heavy Quark Effective Theory (HQET) we determine the b-quark fragmentation function from electron-positron annihilation data at the Z-boson peak at next-to-next-to leading order with next-to-next-to leading log resummation of DGLAP logarithms, and next-to-next-to next -to leading log resummation of endpoint logarithms. This analysis improves, by one order, the previous extraction of the b-quark fragmentation function. We find that while the addition of the next order in the calculation does not much shift the extracted form of the fragmentation function, it does reduce theoretical errors indicating that the expansion is converging. Using an approach based on effective field theory allows us to systematically control theoretical errors. While the fits of theory to data are generally good, the fits seem to be hinting that higher order correction from HQET may be needed to explain the b-quark fragmentation function at smaller values of momentum fraction.

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- University of Maryland, College Park, 2006.
Thesis research directed by: Physics. Title from t.p. of PDF. Includes bibliographical references. Published by UMI Dissertation Services, Ann Arbor, Mich. Also available in paper.

This thesis uses a variety of numerical and statistical techniques to perform high precision calculations in high energy physics using quantum field theory. It introduces the experimental motivation for the calculation of B meson form factors and includes a discussion of previous work. It then describes the modern theoretical framework describing these phenomena, outlining quantum chromodynamics and electroweak theory, and then illustrating the procedure of gauge fixing, the quantum effective action and background field gauge which is required for subsequent perturbative work. Details of the basic methodology of lattice quantum field theory are given as well as the specific formulation of the relativistic theory and nonrelativistic approximations used in this work to describe quantum chromodynamics. A comprehensive calculation of the zero recoil B to D* form factor is then presented, using state of the art lattice techniques with relativistic charm sea quarks and light sea quarks with correct physical masses, leading to a discussion of the dominant sources of uncertainty and possible resolutions of experimental tensions. Also included is preliminary work towards the full calculation of nonzero recoil matrix elements, with the aim of outlining possible future work. Finally, this thesis presents the computation of parameters correcting for radiative one loop phenomena and corrections to the kinetic coupling parameters in nonrelativistic quantum chromodynamics in order to achieve a desirable level of precision in future calculations. This is done using Monte-Carlo integration to evaluate integrals from diagrams generated using automated lattice perturbation theory in background field gauge in order to match the coefficients of the effective action between the lattice and the continuum.

Gitter QCD ist ein erfolgreiches Instrument zur nicht-perturbativen Berechnung von QCD Observablen. Die hierfür notwendige Auswertung des QCD Pfadintegrals besteht aus zwei Teilen: Zuerst werden Stützstellen generiert, an denen danach das Pfadintegral ausgewertet wird. In der Regel werden für den ersten Teil Markov-chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) Methoden verwendet, die für die meisten Anwendungen sehr gute Ergebnisse liefern, aber auch Probleme wie eine langsame Fehlerskalierung und das numerische Vorzeichenproblem bergen. Der zweite Teil beinhaltet die Berechnung von Quark zusammenhängenden und unzusammenhängenden Diagrammen. Letztere tragen maßgeblich zu physikalischen Observablen bei, jedoch leidet deren Berechnung an großen Fehlerabschätzungen. In dieser Arbeit werden Methoden präsentiert, um die beschriebenen Schwierigkeiten in beiden Auswertungsteilen des QCD Pfadintegrals anzugehen und somit Observablen effizienter beziehungsweise genauer abschätzen zu können. Für die Berechnung der unzusammenhängenden Diagramme haben wir die Methode der exakten Eigenmodenrekonstruktion mit Deflation getestet und konnten eine 5.5 fache Verbesserung der Laufzeit erreichen. Um die Probleme von MCMC Methoden zu adressieren haben wir die rekursive numerische Integration zur Vereinfachung von Integralauswertungen getestet. Wir haben diese Methode, kominiert mit einer Gauß-Quadraturregel, auf den eindimensionalen quantenmechanischen Rotor angewandt und konnten exponentiell skalierende Fehlerabschätzungen erreichen. Der nächste Schritt ist eine Verallgemeinerung zu höheren Raumzeit Dimensionen. Außerdem haben wir symmetrisierte Quadraturregeln entwickelt, um das Vorzeichenproblem zu umgehen. Wir haben diese Regeln auf die eindimensionale QCD mit chemischem Potential angewandt und konnten zeigen, dass sie das Vorzeichenproblem beseitigen und sehr effizient auf Modelle mit einer Variablen angewendet werden können. Zukünftig kann die Effizienz für mehr Variablen verbessert werden.
Lattice QCD is a very successful tool to compute QCD observables non-perturbatively from first principles. The therefore needed evaluation of the QCD path integral consists of two parts: first, sampling points are generated at which second, the path integral is evaluated. The first part is typically achieved by Markov-chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods which work very well for most applications but also have some issues as their slow error scaling and the numerical sign-problem. The second part includes the computation of quark connected and disconnected diagrams. Improvements of the signal-to-noise ratio have to be found since the disconnected diagrams, though their estimation being very noisy, contribute significantly to physical observables. Methods are proposed to overcome the aforementioned difficulties in both parts of the evaluation of the lattice QCD path integral and therefore to estimate observables more efficiently and more accurately. For the computation of quark disconnected diagrams we tested the exact eigenmode reconstruction with deflation method and found that this method resulted in a 5.5-fold reduction of runtime. To address the difficulties of MCMC methods, we tested the recursive numerical integration method, which simplifies the evaluation of the integral. We applied the method in combination with a Gauss quadrature rule to the one-dimensional quantum-mechanical rotor and found that we can compute error estimates that scale exponentially to the correct result. A generalization to higher space-time dimensions can be done in the future. Additionally, we developed the symmetrized quadrature rules to address the sign-problem. We applied them to the one-dimensional QCD with a chemical potential and found that this method is capable of overcoming the sign-problem completely and is very efficient for models with one variable. Improvements of the efficiency for multi-variable scenarios can be made in the future.

We describe work on the construction of an effective field theory on a spherical light shell. The motivation arises from classical electromagnetism: If a collision produces charged particles with zero net charge emerging simultaneously from a point and instantaneously accelerating to the speed of light, then the electromagnetic fields due to these charges lie entirely on a spherical shell expanding at the speed of light. We show that this also applies to classical color radiation from high-energy collisions that produce colored particles. Specifically, the color fields produced in such a process are associated with a non-linear σ-model on the 2D light shell with specific symmetry-breaking terms. The quantum version of such a picture exhibits asymptotic freedom and should therefore be a useful starting point for a light-shell effective theory for QCD. We start in the simplified context of zero-flavor scalar quantum electrodynamics. Our effective theory has 3 major ingredients: breaking down the fields into soft and hard sectors with the large energy of the hard fields in the radial direction scaled out, a special gauge called light-shell gauge in which the picture simplifies, and a gauge-invariant source defined on a spherical light shell having infinitesimal radius. We match the fields between the effective theory and the full theory, meaning zero-flavor scalar QED. This allows us to compute the amplitude for the production of any number of scalars from the gauge-invariant source. We then find the tree-level amplitude for the emission of a photon using our effective theory and show that our result agrees with the full theory. To calculate loop effects in our effective theory, we need the photon propagator in light-shell gauge. We derive this propagator and use it to calculate the 1-loop correction to the amplitude for the production of a scalar and anti-scalar pair arising from virtual photon effects. This reduces to a pair of purely angular integrals in the effective theory and reproduces the familiar double logs of the full theory subject to an appropriate interpretation of an angular cutoff.
Physics

The Standard Model of particle physics is believed to be only the low energy limit of a more fundamental theory. In order to determine its range of validity, a major part of theoretical and experimental efforts in physics is dedicated to precision tests of the Standard Model. Lattice QCD is a non-perturbative, first-principles approach to Quantum Field Theory. It plays an important role in flavor physics by providing calculations of non-perturbative strong interaction contributions to weak processes involving quarks. Measurements of hadronic quantities can be used to constrain the Standard Model as well as theories Beyond the Standard Model. The first part of this thesis contains theoretical developments regarding non-perturbative renormalization. A new renormalization scheme, RI/mSMOM, for fermion bilinear operators in QCD at non-vanishing quark mass is presented. In order to investigate the properties of the mSMOM scheme, an explicit one-loop computation in perturbation theory using dimensional regularization is performed. Numerically, vertex functions are generated on the lattice, with an appropriate projector, based on the RI/SMOM scheme and the renormalization factors are extracted. Quantities measured include renormalization of the axial current ZA, required to renormalize the axial current entering the computation of the decay constant and the renormalization of the bag parameter. The second part of this report focuses on flavor physics phenomenology on the lattice. It presents results of the first run of the RBC/UKQCD charm project with (2+1)-flavor Domain Wall fermions. Observables and matrix elements are measured on lattices with Iwasaki gauge action. There are two ensembles at the physical point with inverse lattice spacings 1.73 and 2.36 GeV and a third finer ensemble at 2.76 GeV as well as four other auxiliary ensembles with smaller volumes and heavier pion masses which are used to perform the continuum extrapolations. The quantities measured in the region of the charm quark mass are meson masses, decay constants, the matrix element of the OV V +AA operator, the neutral D-meson mixing parameter B and the SU(3) breaking ratio ξ.

La Chromodynamique Quantique (QCD) sur réseau permet d'étudier de façon ab-initio et non-perturbative les processus d'interaction forte. Ce formalisme, qui permet une régularisation covariante de la théorie de l'interaction forte, fournit aussi un cadre naturel pour le calcul et la simulation numérique de la Chromodynamique Quantique. Dans cette thèse, après un tour d'horizon des principales propriétés de la QCD et une présentation détaillée de notre discrétisation de cette théorie sur un réseau, nous étudions de façon approfondie deux problèmes de physique hadronique : le phénomène de diffusion résonante et la structure du nucléon. Les calculs sont réalisés avec les configurations de jauge de la Collaboration Budapest-Marseille-Wuppertal, générées avec une action de Wilson améliorée avec 2+1 saveurs de quarks dynamiques. Elles couvrent une large gamme de pas de réseau, de volumes et de masses des quarks différents, permettant ainsi une étude fine de la sensibilité de nos résultats à ces paramètres, et fournissant un bon contrôle sur l'extrapolation au continu. Notre étude de la diffusion de particules sur le réseau est menée grâce à une méthode proposée par M. Lüscher. Nous avons choisi le cas particulier de la diffusion pion-pion dans le canal résonant du méson rho, et analysé nos données avec une méthode variationnelle aux valeurs propres généralisées. Nous présentons les déphasages pion-pion ainsi que les paramètres de la résonance obtenus de façon détaillée, tout en garantissant un bon contrôle de nos erreurs systématiques. Nos résultats apportent une avancée importante dans le panorama des études de diffusion sur le réseau car ce sont les premiers réalisés à la masse physique du pion, pour laquelle la désintégration du rho en deux pions peut effectivement avoir lieu. Les valeurs obtenues pour les paramètres de la résonance du méson rho sont accord avec l'expérience, et confirment la faible dépendance du couplage entre le rho et les deux pions à la masse du pion. L'exploration de la structure du nucléon se fait à travers un calcul complet des facteurs de forme électrofaibles isovectoriels, avec une étude approfondie du rayon de charge électrique et de la charge axiale. Notre analyse présente aussi des données à la masse physique du pion, ce qui s'avère crucial pour maîtriser les extrapolations au point physique, étant données les variations violentes prédites par la perturbation chirale de ces quantités. Notre calcul utilise une projection sur les états du nucléon à la source et au puits, et une méthode de fit combinant les fonctions de corrélation à deux et trois points afin de réduire et de contrôler au maximum les contaminations pouvant venir des états excités. Bien que davantage de données seraient nécessaires pour déterminer très précisément le rayon et la charge axiale au point physique avec une évaluation pertinente des erreurs systématiques, les valeurs que nous obtenons sont en bon accord avec l'expérience, et suggèrent que les effets dus aux états excités sont faibles et sous contrôle. Notre analyse souligne aussi que l'utilisation de configurations de jauge avec des masses de pion proches de la valeur physique et avec des grands volumes semble indispensable à une étude précise de la structure du nucléon sur réseau
The formalism of Quantum Chromodynamics on the lattice (or Lattice QCD) allows to perform ab-initio non-perturbative studies of strong-interaction driven processes, as it provides both a covariant regularisation of the theory of QCD and a natural framework for numerical computations. In this work, after a review of the main features of QCD and a step-by-step presentation of our discretization of QCD on a lattice, we undertake detailed studies of two problems of hadronic physics: the phenomenon of resonant scattering and the structure of the nucleon. The lattice calculations are performed with the Budapest-Marseille-Wuppertal Collaboration's 2+1-flavour gauge configurations, which give access to a wide range of lattice spacings, volumes and quarks masses, thereby allowing to study the sensibility of our results on these parameters, and to perform a complete continuum extrapolation. These configurations include dynamical quarks, and use a clover-improved Wilson QCD action. To investigate the scattering of particles on the lattice, we set up a Lüscher analysis for the emblematic case of pion-pion scattering in the channel of the rho meson resonance. We analyse our data with a variational generalized eigenvalue method, and give an in-depth calculation of the scattering phase-shifts and the corresponding resonance parameters, with a full control of the systematic errors. Our results provide an important step for lattice studies of scattering states, as they are the first to be performed at the physical pion mass, where one can see the actual decay of the rho into two pions. The obtained rho meson parameters are in good agreement with the experimental values, and consistent with a weak pion mass dependence of the coupling between the rho and two pions. As for our probe of the structure of the nucleon, we present a complete extraction of the electroweak isovector form factors, with a comprehensive study of the electric charge squared radius and of the axial charge. Our analysis also feature data at the physical pion mass, which turns out to be crucial in order to perform safe extrapolations to the physical point, as the chiral perturbation theory predicts violent variations of these quantities near the massless-quarks point. Our calculation includes source and sink projections onto the nucleon state, as well as a combined fit method between the two-point and three-point correlation functions to control the contamination of our data by excited states. Although one would need more data to perform a high-accuracy determination of the nucleon radius and axial charge at the physical point with a relevant estimation of the systematic errors, the results we obtain are in good agreement with the experiment and suggest that the excited-state effects are under control. Our analysis also highlights that gauge configurations ensembles near the physical pion mass and with large volumes must be used in order to extract accurate information about the nucleon structure from lattice calculations

Les moments magnétiques anomaux des leptons ont joué un rôle important dans le développement du modèle standard de la physique des particules. Aujourd’hui, celui du muon est mesuré très précisément et le sera avec une precision encore plus grande par une expérience qui débutera en 2017. Dans la mesure où la prédiction théorique pourra être faite avec des incertitudes comparables, un test rigoureux du modèle standard sera possible. Nous étudions ici le facteur limitant de cette prédiction, la contribution de la polarisation hadronique du vide à l’ordre dominant (HVP-LO). Nous calculons cette contribution numériquement à l’aide d’une version discrétisée de la théorie de l’interaction forte, la chromodynamique quantique sur réseau. Le calcul haute-performance permet de résoudre la théorie dans son régime hautement non-linéaire qui est le plus pertinent ici. Les algorithmes de simulation et les méthodes utilisées pour obtenir la polarisation hadronique, ainsi que les incertitudes associées, sont décrits. Ces méthodes sont ensuite appliquées à des simulations réalisées avec la collaboration Budapest-Marseille-Wuppertal. Dans un premier temps, elles sont implémentées dans une étude dédiée des effets de volume fini. Les méthodes les plus robustes sont ensuite utilisées pour calculer la polarisation hadronique avec des simulations qui comprennent N_f=2+1+1 saveurs de quarks. Celles-ci sont réalisées directement à la valeur physique des masses de quarks u, d, s et c, avec six tailles de maille et dans de gros volumes de 6 fm^3. Elles nous permettent de calculer la contribution HVP-LO au moment magnétique anomal du muon avec des erreurs contrôlées d’environ 3%
The anomalous magnetic moments of leptons have played an important role in the development of the Standard Model of particle physics. Today, that of the muon is measured very precisely and will be so with even higher precision in an experiment that will begin in 2017. To the extent that the theoretical prediction can be made with comparable uncertainties, a rigorous test of the Standard Model will be possible. Here we study the limiting factor in this prediction, the leading-order hadronic vacuum polarization contribution (HVP-LO). We compute this contribution numerically with a discretized version of the theory of the strong interaction: lattice Quantum Chromodynamics. High-performance computing allows to solve the theory in its highly nonlinear regime, which is the one most relevant here. The simulation algorithms and the methods used to obtain the HVP, as well as the associated statistical and systematic uncertainties, are described. These methods are then applied to simulations performed with the Budapest-Marseille-Wuppertal collaboration. First they are implemented in a dedicated study of finite-volume effects. The most robust methods are then used to compute the HVP with simulations which include N_f=2+1+1 flavors of quarks. These are performed directly at the physical values of the u, d, s and c quark masses, with six lattice spacings and in large volumes of 6 fm^3. They allow us to compute the HVP-LO contribution to the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon with controlled errors of around 3%

Several different approaches to renormalization are studied. The Callan-Symanzik equation is derived and we study its beta functions. An effective potential for the Coleman-Weinberg model is studied to find that the beta function is positive and that spontaneous symmetry breaking will occur if we expand around the classical field. Lastly we renormalize a non-abelian gaugetheory to find that the beta function in QCD is negative.

Chiral effective field theory complements numerical simulations of quantum chromodynamics on a spacetime lattice. It provides a model-independent formalism for connecting lattice simulation results at finite volume, and at a variety of quark masses, to the physical region. Knowledge of the power-counting regime of chiral effective field theory, where higher-order terms of the expansion may be regarded as negligible, is as important as knowledge of the expansion. Through the consideration of a variety of renormalization schemes, techniques are established to identify the power-counting regime. Within the power-counting regime, the results of extrapolation are independent of the renormalization scheme. The nucleon mass is considered as a benchmark for illustrating this approach. Because the power-counting regime is small, the numerical simulation results are also examined to search for the possible presence of an optimal regularization scale, which may be used to describe lattice simulation results outside of the power-counting regime. Such an optimal regularization scale is found for the nucleon mass. The identification of an optimal scale, with its associated systematic uncertainty, measures the degree to which the lattice QCD simulation results extend beyond the power-counting regime, thus quantifying the scheme-dependence of an extrapolation. The techniques developed for the nucleon mass renormalization are applied to the quenched ρ meson mass, which offers a unique test case for extrapolation schemes. In the absence of a known experimental value, it serves to demonstrate the ability of the extrapolation scheme to make predictions without prior phenomenological bias. The robustness of the procedure for obtaining an optimal regularization scale and performing a reliable chiral extrapolation is confirmed. The procedure developed is then applied to the magnetic moment and the electric charge radius of the isovector nucleon, to obtain a consistent optimal regularization scale. The consistency of the results for the value of the optimal regularization scale provides strong evidence for the existence of an intrinsic energy scale for the nucleon-pion interaction.
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Chemistry and Physics,, 2011

Electromagnetic properties of the octet and decuplet baryons are calculated in quenched QCD on a 20 ³ x40 lattice with a lattice spacing of 0.128 fm using the fat - link irrelevant clover ( FLIC ) fermion action. FLIC fermions enable simulations to be performed efficiently at quark masses as low as 300 MeV. By combining FLIC fermions with an improved conserved vector current we ensure that discretization errors occur only at Ο ( α ² ) while maintaining current conservation. Magnetic moments, charge radii and magnetic radii are extracted from the electric and magnetic form factors for each individual quark sector. From these the corresponding baryon properties are constructed. Our results for the octet baryons are compared with the predictions of Quenched Chiral Perturbation Theory ( Q χ PT ) and experimental values where available. Results for the charge radii and magnetic moments of the octet baryons are in accord with the predictions of the Q χ PT, suggesting that the sum of higher order terms makes only a small contribution to the chiral expansion. The regime where chiral physics dominates remains to be explored. We establish the non - analytic behavior of the charge radii and magnetic moment in the case of octet baryons. The neutron charge radius suggests that the chiral regime is still far away. We establish substantial environment sensitivity in the quark behavior in the low mass region. We establish that the u and d quarks make substantial and important contribution to the magnetic moment of the Λ contradicting the predictions of the Simple Quark Model. We present the E0 and M1 form factors of the decuplet baryons and the charge radii and magnetic moments. We compare the decuplet baryon results with the lattice calculation of charge radii and magnetic moments of octet baryons. We establish that the environment sensitivity is far less pronounced in the case of the decuplet baryons compared to that in the octet baryons. A surprising result is that the charge radii of the decuplet baryons are generally smaller than that of the octet baryons. Magnetic moment of the Δ + shows a turn over in the low quark mass region, making it smaller than the proton magnetic moment. This is consistent with the expectations of the Quenched Chiral Perturbation Theory. A similar turn over is also noticed in the magnetic moment of the ∑ * [superscript 0], but not for Ξ * where only kaon loops can appear in Quenched QCD. We present results for the higher order moments of the decuplet baryons, i.e., the electric quadrupole moment E2 and the magnetic octupole moment M3. With these results we provide the first conclusive analysis which shows that decuplet baryons are deformed. The electric quadrupole moment of the The electric quadrupole moment of the Ω ‾ baryon is postive when the negative charge factor is included, and is equal to 0.014 ± 0.0005 fm ², indicating an oblate shape.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Chemistry and Physics, 2006.

Electromagnetic properties of the octet and decuplet baryons are calculated in quenched QCD on a 20 ³ x40 lattice with a lattice spacing of 0.128 fm using the fat - link irrelevant clover ( FLIC ) fermion action. FLIC fermions enable simulations to be performed efficiently at quark masses as low as 300 MeV. By combining FLIC fermions with an improved conserved vector current we ensure that discretization errors occur only at Ο ( α ² ) while maintaining current conservation. Magnetic moments, charge radii and magnetic radii are extracted from the electric and magnetic form factors for each individual quark sector. From these the corresponding baryon properties are constructed. Our results for the octet baryons are compared with the predictions of Quenched Chiral Perturbation Theory ( Q χ PT ) and experimental values where available. Results for the charge radii and magnetic moments of the octet baryons are in accord with the predictions of the Q χ PT, suggesting that the sum of higher order terms makes only a small contribution to the chiral expansion. The regime where chiral physics dominates remains to be explored. We establish the non - analytic behavior of the charge radii and magnetic moment in the case of octet baryons. The neutron charge radius suggests that the chiral regime is still far away. We establish substantial environment sensitivity in the quark behavior in the low mass region. We establish that the u and d quarks make substantial and important contribution to the magnetic moment of the Λ contradicting the predictions of the Simple Quark Model. We present the E0 and M1 form factors of the decuplet baryons and the charge radii and magnetic moments. We compare the decuplet baryon results with the lattice calculation of charge radii and magnetic moments of octet baryons. We establish that the environment sensitivity is far less pronounced in the case of the decuplet baryons compared to that in the octet baryons. A surprising result is that the charge radii of the decuplet baryons are generally smaller than that of the octet baryons. Magnetic moment of the Δ + shows a turn over in the low quark mass region, making it smaller than the proton magnetic moment. This is consistent with the expectations of the Quenched Chiral Perturbation Theory. A similar turn over is also noticed in the magnetic moment of the ∑ * [superscript 0], but not for Ξ * where only kaon loops can appear in Quenched QCD. We present results for the higher order moments of the decuplet baryons, i.e., the electric quadrupole moment E2 and the magnetic octupole moment M3. With these results we provide the first conclusive analysis which shows that decuplet baryons are deformed. The electric quadrupole moment of the The electric quadrupole moment of the Ω ‾ baryon is postive when the negative charge factor is included, and is equal to 0.014 ± 0.0005 fm ², indicating an oblate shape.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Chemistry and Physics, 2006.

In this dissertation, a low energy theory approach is applied to the studies of Dark Matter direct detection experiments and two-dimensional Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) spectra. We build a general framework of non-relativistic effective field theory of Dark Matter direct detection using non-relativistic operators. Any Dark Matter particle theory can be translated into the coefficients of an effective operator and any effective operator can be related to a most general description of the nuclear response. Response functions are evaluated for common Dark Matter targets. Based on the effective field theory we perform an analysis of the experimental constraints on the full parameter space of elastically scattering Dark Matter. We also formulate an analytic approach to solving two-dimensional gauge theories. We find that in theories with confinement, in a conformal operator basis, the decoupling of high scaling-dimension operators from the low-energy spectrum occurs exponentially fast in their scaling-dimension. Consequently the low-energy spectrum of a strongly coupled system like QCD can be calculated using a truncated conformal basis, to an accuracy parametrized exponentially by the cutoff dimension. We apply the conformal basis approach in two models, a two-dimensional QCD with an adjoint fermion at large N, and a two-dimensional QCD with a fundamental fermion at finite N. It is shown that the low energy spectrum converges efficiently in both cases.

We present a calculation of the magnetic moment and magnetic polarisability of the nucleon. The calculation is performed using the background field method of lattice QCD. Dynamical results are from 32³ x 64 configurations with 2+1 flavours of quark provided by the PACS-CS group through the ILDG. These lattices use a clover fermion action and Iwasaki gauge action with β = 1:9 and physical lattice spacing α = 0:0907(13) fm. Quenched results come from 32³ x 40 lattices using a FLIC fermion action and Symanzik improved gauge action with β = 3:2 and α = 0:127 fm. The Landau energy is a crucial effect in the calculation of magnetic polarisabilities for charged particles. We derive the Landau levels and show their effect using examples of proton energy shifts in a background field. Next we investigate the effects of moving the origin of the background gauge potential. This procedure looks similar to the technique of twisted boundary conditions, but we explain how for a quantised background field there is no change in the physical states, and show evidence using tree level calculations. We present magnetic moment calculations for the proton and neutron, with a comparison between quenched and dynamical background field results as well as three point function results. We use the variational method in order to isolate excited states so that we can present results for the magnetic moment of the lowest lying odd-parity proton and neutron states. Finally we present a calculation of the magnetic polarisability of the neutron. We investigate ways of improving the plateau behaviour of the energy shift, including the use of a variational analysis with a variety of source and sink smearings. Results are compared with experimental values.
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Chemistry and Physics, 2013

Quantum chromodynamics (QCD), the theory of quarks and gluons, is known to be

the correct description of strong nuclear interactions. At high energy and momenta,

one can use QCD directly to compute quantities of physical interest related to the

strong force. At low energies and momenta, one should use a different description in

terms of the degrees of freedom relevant at that scale. Two approaches to achieve

this end are effective field theories and gauge/gravity dualities. The former involves

a field theory more or less like QCD itself, but with states which are composites

of quarks and gluons. Then a perturbative expansion is made not in terms of the

gauge coupling but instead in terms of the momentum of the fields. This approach

dates back to the 1970s and is on firm theoretical footing. Gauge/gravity dualities

are a newer and less understood technique, which relates the physics of the strong

interactions to a different but likely equivalent theory in a higher dimensional space-

time, where the quantity of interest can be computed more readily. We employ

both effective field theories and gauge/gravity dualities to study the physics of ex-

otic quarkonium states, that is bound states containing a heavy quark-antiquark pair

which nevertheless cannot be be understood working only with the standard quark

model of hadrons. Candidates for such states, long speculated to exist, have recently

been observed at particle colliders, so that the theory of exotic quarkonium is now

of great experimental importance.

Dissertation