Exact correlators from conformal Ward identities in momentum space and the perturbative \textit{TJJ} vertex (Q1710198)

In conformal field theory, an \(n\)-point function is a function that we assign to an \(n\)-tuple of tensor field operators of the conformal symmetry group. These functions satisfy certain ``Ward identities'' induced by the conformal symmetry. A momentum space framework to study three-point functions of conformal field theory has been introduced in [\textit{A. Bzowski} et al., J. High Energy Phys. 2014, No. 3, Paper No. 111, 105 p. (2014; Zbl 1406.81082)]. This essentially amounts to restating the \(n\)-point functions and the Ward identities in term of their Fourier transforms. In the paper under review the authors study three-point functions in momentum space. In the first part of the paper, the authors elaborate on the consequences of translational invariance in coordinate space which results in momentum conservation implying that an \(n\)-point function is a function of \(n-1\) independent momenta. The authors study contributions which appear after Fourier transforming the conformal transformations and show that such contributions do not cancel out, but lead to specific forms of the conformal generators in momentum space which are in agreement with those presented in [loc. cit.]. In the second part, the authors study scalar and tensor correlators and the solutions of the Ward identities. They elaborate on the apparent violation of the Leibnitz rule for the special conformal generator which emerges whenever the momentum conservation is imposed. The authors proceed with an analysis of the \(TJJ\) correlator, presenting a detailed re-derivation of the conformal equations, study the resulting constraints on the form factors \(A_i\) introduced in [loc. cit.] by using Ward identities correponding to Lorentz transformations, and confirm the results of [loc. cit.]. In the position space translational invariance can be used to put each of the operators included in the three-point function on the origin and treat it as a singlet under Lorentz transformations. The authors show how different choices for the singlet operator leads to equivalent outcomes. They also compute the form factors by investigating the Fuchsian structure of the equations, providing a new method of solution which differs from the one based on triple-\(K\) integrals presented in [loc. cit.]. The authors show that the number of integration constants obtained in this method does not necessarily coincide with those presented in [loc. cit.]; more important, they find evidence that the Fuchsian exponents are universal and characterize the entire system of equations. The authors compute \(TJJ\) correlator in the transverse traceless basis both in QED and in scalar QED by perturbation and by comparing the \(A_i\) basis with the \(F_i\)-basis introduced in [\textit{M. Giannotti} and \textit{E. Mottola}, ``The trace anomaly and massless scalar degrees of freedom in gravity'', Phys. Rev. D 79, No. 4, Article ID 045014, 33 p. (2009; \url{doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.79.045014})] show that the \(TJJ\) correlator is affected by one anomaly pole in the graviton line, induced by renormalization. This result implies that the origin of the anomaly, in this correlator can be attributed to the exchange of a massless effective degree of freedom. Finally the authors show how the perturbative solutions for the form factor \(A_i\), which are given in the appendix, reproduce the exact results of [Bzowski et al., loc. cit.] in a simplified way. This correspondence is studied by fixing an appropriate normalization of the photon two-point functions and shows that the choice of different perturbative sectors (scalar, fermion) in both cases are sufficient to reproduce the entire nonperturbative result. This implies that there should be significant cancellations among the contributions of the triple-\(K\) integrals or those given by the authors in such a way that they can be expressed in terms of two elementary master integrals.