Is the Nicolai map unique?

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Authors

Research Organisations

View graph of relations

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number139
JournalJournal of high energy physics
Volume2022
Issue number9
Publication statusPublished - 19 Sept 2022

Abstract

The Nicolai map is a field transformation that relates supersymmetric theories at finite couplings g with the free theory at g = 0. It is obtained via an ordered exponential of the coupling flow operator integrated from 0 to g. Allowing multiple couplings, we find that the map in general depends on the chosen integration contour in coupling space. This induces a large functional freedom in the construction of the Nicolai map, which cancels in all correlator computations. Under a certain condition on the coupling flow operator the ambiguity disappears, and the power-series expansion for the map collapses to a linear function in the coupling. A special role is played by topological (theta) couplings, which do not affect perturbative correlation functions but also alter the Nicolai map. We demonstate that for certain ‘magical’ theta values the uniqueness condition holds, providing an exact map polynomial in the fields and independent of the integration contour. This feature is related to critical points of the Nicolai map and the existence of ‘instantons’. As a toy model, we work with N = 1 supersymmetric quantum mechanics. For a cubic superpotential and a theta term, we explicitly compute the one-, two- and three-point correlation function to one-loop order employing a graphical representation of the (inverse) Nicolai map in terms of tree diagrams, confirming the cancellation of theta dependence. Comparison of Nicolai and conventional Feynman perturbation theory nontrivially yields complete agreement, but only after adding all (1PI and 1PR) contributions.

Keywords

    Field Theories in Lower Dimensions, Nonperturbative Effects, Superspaces

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Cite this

Is the Nicolai map unique? / Lechtenfeld, Olaf; Rupprecht, Maximilian.
In: Journal of high energy physics, Vol. 2022, No. 9, 139, 19.09.2022.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Lechtenfeld O, Rupprecht M. Is the Nicolai map unique? Journal of high energy physics. 2022 Sept 19;2022(9):139. doi: 10.1007/JHEP09(2022)139
Lechtenfeld, Olaf ; Rupprecht, Maximilian. / Is the Nicolai map unique?. In: Journal of high energy physics. 2022 ; Vol. 2022, No. 9.
Download
@article{9fad9d6b5c5c48d8862ca939e260fb2a,
title = "Is the Nicolai map unique?",
abstract = "The Nicolai map is a field transformation that relates supersymmetric theories at finite couplings g with the free theory at g = 0. It is obtained via an ordered exponential of the coupling flow operator integrated from 0 to g. Allowing multiple couplings, we find that the map in general depends on the chosen integration contour in coupling space. This induces a large functional freedom in the construction of the Nicolai map, which cancels in all correlator computations. Under a certain condition on the coupling flow operator the ambiguity disappears, and the power-series expansion for the map collapses to a linear function in the coupling. A special role is played by topological (theta) couplings, which do not affect perturbative correlation functions but also alter the Nicolai map. We demonstate that for certain {\textquoteleft}magical{\textquoteright} theta values the uniqueness condition holds, providing an exact map polynomial in the fields and independent of the integration contour. This feature is related to critical points of the Nicolai map and the existence of {\textquoteleft}instantons{\textquoteright}. As a toy model, we work with N = 1 supersymmetric quantum mechanics. For a cubic superpotential and a theta term, we explicitly compute the one-, two- and three-point correlation function to one-loop order employing a graphical representation of the (inverse) Nicolai map in terms of tree diagrams, confirming the cancellation of theta dependence. Comparison of Nicolai and conventional Feynman perturbation theory nontrivially yields complete agreement, but only after adding all (1PI and 1PR) contributions.",
keywords = "Field Theories in Lower Dimensions, Nonperturbative Effects, Superspaces",
author = "Olaf Lechtenfeld and Maximilian Rupprecht",
year = "2022",
month = sep,
day = "19",
doi = "10.1007/JHEP09(2022)139",
language = "English",
volume = "2022",
journal = "Journal of high energy physics",
issn = "1029-8479",
publisher = "Springer Verlag",
number = "9",

}

Download

TY - JOUR

T1 - Is the Nicolai map unique?

AU - Lechtenfeld, Olaf

AU - Rupprecht, Maximilian

PY - 2022/9/19

Y1 - 2022/9/19

N2 - The Nicolai map is a field transformation that relates supersymmetric theories at finite couplings g with the free theory at g = 0. It is obtained via an ordered exponential of the coupling flow operator integrated from 0 to g. Allowing multiple couplings, we find that the map in general depends on the chosen integration contour in coupling space. This induces a large functional freedom in the construction of the Nicolai map, which cancels in all correlator computations. Under a certain condition on the coupling flow operator the ambiguity disappears, and the power-series expansion for the map collapses to a linear function in the coupling. A special role is played by topological (theta) couplings, which do not affect perturbative correlation functions but also alter the Nicolai map. We demonstate that for certain ‘magical’ theta values the uniqueness condition holds, providing an exact map polynomial in the fields and independent of the integration contour. This feature is related to critical points of the Nicolai map and the existence of ‘instantons’. As a toy model, we work with N = 1 supersymmetric quantum mechanics. For a cubic superpotential and a theta term, we explicitly compute the one-, two- and three-point correlation function to one-loop order employing a graphical representation of the (inverse) Nicolai map in terms of tree diagrams, confirming the cancellation of theta dependence. Comparison of Nicolai and conventional Feynman perturbation theory nontrivially yields complete agreement, but only after adding all (1PI and 1PR) contributions.

AB - The Nicolai map is a field transformation that relates supersymmetric theories at finite couplings g with the free theory at g = 0. It is obtained via an ordered exponential of the coupling flow operator integrated from 0 to g. Allowing multiple couplings, we find that the map in general depends on the chosen integration contour in coupling space. This induces a large functional freedom in the construction of the Nicolai map, which cancels in all correlator computations. Under a certain condition on the coupling flow operator the ambiguity disappears, and the power-series expansion for the map collapses to a linear function in the coupling. A special role is played by topological (theta) couplings, which do not affect perturbative correlation functions but also alter the Nicolai map. We demonstate that for certain ‘magical’ theta values the uniqueness condition holds, providing an exact map polynomial in the fields and independent of the integration contour. This feature is related to critical points of the Nicolai map and the existence of ‘instantons’. As a toy model, we work with N = 1 supersymmetric quantum mechanics. For a cubic superpotential and a theta term, we explicitly compute the one-, two- and three-point correlation function to one-loop order employing a graphical representation of the (inverse) Nicolai map in terms of tree diagrams, confirming the cancellation of theta dependence. Comparison of Nicolai and conventional Feynman perturbation theory nontrivially yields complete agreement, but only after adding all (1PI and 1PR) contributions.

KW - Field Theories in Lower Dimensions

KW - Nonperturbative Effects

KW - Superspaces

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85138287859&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/JHEP09(2022)139

DO - 10.1007/JHEP09(2022)139

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85138287859

VL - 2022

JO - Journal of high energy physics

JF - Journal of high energy physics

SN - 1029-8479

IS - 9

M1 - 139

ER -

By the same author(s)