Strongly and slightly flavored gauge theories

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent advances in understanding the phase diagram of non-abelian gauge theories, focusing on how flavor content influences conformal symmetry, asymptotic freedom, and the interplay of various theoretical approaches.

Contribution

It combines numerical lattice studies and theoretical insights to clarify the phase structure of gauge theories with varying flavor content and representations.

Findings

Conformal symmetry can be restored before losing asymptotic freedom.

Flavor content significantly affects the phase diagram and symmetry properties.

Numerical and theoretical methods together help clarify complex gauge theory behaviors.

Abstract

We review some recent progress in our understanding of the phase diagram of non abelian gauge theories, by varying their flavor content -- fermion representations and the number of flavors. In particular, we explore the way conformal symmetry can be restored before the loss of asymptotic freedom, and through a subtle interplay of perturbation theory, chiral dynamics and confining forces. It is with the combination of numerical lattice studies and theoretical insights into gauge theories with and without supersymmetry that we may successfully attempt to clarify the missing pieces of this puzzle.