Wilson loop expectations in lattice gauge theories with finite gauge groups (Q2216778)

Usual computations in quantum field theory (QFT) are based on a perturbative expansion in the coupling constant which breaks down at strong coupling. This situation is particularly relevant for quantum chromodynamics (QCD) which is a SU(3) gauge theory describing the strong interaction of the Standard Model between particles possessing a charge called color. One of the most important question in this context is how confinement arises, that is, why only color-singlet particles can be observed. A Wilson loop operator is gauge-invariant observable obtained from the holonomy of the gauge field along a closed loop whose expectation value provides an order parameter for the confinement phase transition. A very successful approach is lattice QFT which consists in discretizing spacetime and reducing the path integral to usual integrals. As such, lattice QFT is particularly convenient for both analytical and numerical computations. The current paper follows the first approach and aims at studying lattice QFT with discrete gauge groups. The main result is the computation of the Wilson loop at first order in a small coupling constant expansion \(\beta^{-1}\) for an infinite lattice \(\mathbb Z^4\). The idea of the proof is to define the theory on a lattice \(\Lambda\) of finite size, computes the Wilson loop, and takes a subsequential limit \(\Lambda \to \mathbb Z^4\). This is done by replacing edge variables by surfaces, similar to what happens for the Ising model (with spin variables replaced by loops); then, these surfaces are described by a Poisson random process whose generating function is the expectation value of the Wilson loop. This last point requires having a discrete group, which explains the focus of the author. The proof considers first Abelian groups before generalizing to non-Abelian groups.