Strongly Coupled Quantum Field Theory in Anti-de Sitter Spacetime

TL;DR

This paper develops a formal framework for studying strongly coupled quantum field theories in Anti-de Sitter spacetime, emphasizing the role of conformal field theories and the AdS/CFT correspondence.

Contribution

It introduces a path integral-based formalism for QFTs in general backgrounds and applies it to analyze the O(N) model in AdS at finite coupling.

Findings

Analysis of the O(N) model in AdS at finite coupling

Understanding crossed-channel contributions to conformal blocks

Formalism connecting QFT in AdS with CFT fixed points

Abstract

We introduce the framework of Quantum Field Theories in general backgrounds through the lens of the path integral, in the formulation known as the Functorial QFT. With the aim of studying properties of strongly coupled QFTs, we present key concepts and techniques such as the effective action, renormalization group flow, and the 1/N expansion. At the fixed points of the RG flow we typically find Conformal Field Theories, which are symmetric under local rescaling of the metric. Among other things, CFTs play a central role in the context of QFT in Anti-de Sitter spacetime, through what is known as the AdS/CFT correspondence. Finally, the developed formalism is applied to analyze the O(N) model in AdS at finite coupling. In particular, we focus on the non-singlet sector, which requires an understanding of crossed-channel diagram contributions to the s-channel conformal block decomposition.