Polyakov loop potential at finite density

TL;DR

This paper determines the Polyakov loop potential at finite temperature and density for QCD with physical quark masses, identifying the deconfinement transition and its critical end-point, enhancing understanding of QCD phase structure.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed calculation of the Polyakov loop potential at finite density for physical quark masses, mapping the deconfinement transition in QCD.

Findings

Identified a cross-over at low chemical potential.

Located the critical end-point at mu/T > 1.

Mapped the phase diagram of QCD with physical quark masses.

Abstract

The Polyakov loop potential serves to distinguish between the confined hadronic and the deconfined quark-gluon plasma phases of QCD. For Nf=2+1 quark flavors with physical masses we determine the Polyakov loop potential at finite temperature and density and extract the location of the deconfinement transition. We find a cross-over at small values of the chemical potential running into a critical end-point at mu/T > 1.