The lightest hybrid meson supermultiplet in QCD

TL;DR

This paper analyzes lattice QCD results to identify the lightest hybrid meson supermultiplet, revealing its quantum numbers, structure, and comparing findings with existing models to understand gluonic excitations.

Contribution

It identifies the lightest hybrid meson supermultiplet with specific quantum numbers and characterizes its gluonic excitation, providing new insights into hybrid meson structure.

Findings

The lightest hybrid mesons have JPC = (0,1,2)-+, 1--.

These hybrids are formed from a chromomagnetic gluonic excitation coupled to S-wave qqbar.

Heavier hybrids involve quark orbital excitations or different gluonic modes.

Abstract

We interpret the spectrum of meson states recently obtained in non-perturbative lattice QCD calculations in terms of constituent quark-antiquark bound states and states, called `hybrids', in which the qqbar pair is supplemented by an excitation of the gluonic field. We identify a lightest supermultiplet of hybrid mesons with JPC = (0,1,2)-+, 1-- built from a gluonic excitation of chromomagnetic character coupled to qqbar in an S-wave. The next lightest hybrids are suggested to be quark orbital excitations with the same gluonic excitation, while the next distinct gluonic excitation is significantly heavier. Existing models of gluonic excitations are compared to these findings and possible phenomenological consequences explored.