On the phase structure and thermodynamics of QCD

TL;DR

This paper investigates the phase structure and thermodynamics of QCD using dynamical chiral models with fluctuations, highlighting the effects of confinement and mass sensitivity near the chiral limit.

Contribution

It introduces the comparison of chiral models with their Polyakov-loop extensions, incorporating fluctuations via the functional renormalization group to enhance understanding of QCD thermodynamics.

Findings

Confinement significantly influences QCD phase transitions.

Fluctuations alter the phase diagram and thermodynamic properties.

Mass sensitivity affects the phase structure near the chiral limit.

Abstract

We discuss the phase structure and thermodynamics of QCD by means of dynamical chiral effective models. Quark and meson fluctuations are included via the functional renormalization group. We study the influence of confinement in addition to the impact of fluctuations by comparing the results of the chiral models to their Polyakov-loop extended versions. Furthermore, we discuss the mass sensitivity of the phase structure and thermodynamics and find interesting modifications close to the chiral limit.