Critical Endpoint of QCD and Baryon Number Fluctuations in a Finite Volume

TL;DR

This paper investigates how the critical endpoint in the QCD phase diagram shifts with volume size and boundary conditions using advanced lattice and Dyson--Schwinger methods, also exploring baryon number fluctuations.

Contribution

It combines lattice Yang--Mills theory and Dyson--Schwinger equations to analyze volume effects on the QCD critical endpoint and baryon number fluctuations.

Findings

Critical endpoint location depends on volume and boundary conditions.

Baryon number fluctuations are affected by finite volume effects.

Results provide insights into QCD phase structure in finite systems.

Abstract

We summarize recent results on the volume dependence of the location of the critical endpoint in the QCD phase diagram. To this end, we employ a sophisticated combination of Lattice Yang--Mills theory and a (truncated) version of Dyson--Schwinger equations in Landau gauge for $2 + 1$ quark flavours. We study this system at small and intermediate volumes and determine the dependence of the location of the critical endpoint on the boundary conditions and the volume of a three-dimensional cube with edge length $L$. We also discuss recent results on baryon number fluctuations in this setup.