Transport at criticality

TL;DR

This paper investigates critical phenomena in holographic gauge theories, focusing on bulk viscosity near phase transitions and revealing universal dynamical critical behavior across different models.

Contribution

It provides the first computation of bulk viscosity critical exponents in non-conformal holographic models at finite temperature.

Findings

Critical exponents of bulk viscosity are computed near phase transitions.

Different models share the same dynamical critical exponent despite belonging to different static universality classes.

Results enhance understanding of dynamical critical phenomena in gauge/gravity duality.

Abstract

We study second order phase transitions in non-conformal holographic models of gauge theory/string theory correspondence at finite temperature and zero chemical potential. We compute critical exponents of the bulk viscosity near the transition and interpret our results in the framework of available models of dynamical critical phenomena. Intriguingly, although some of the models we discuss belong to different static universality classes, they appear to share the same dynamical critical exponent.