BRST Invariant Boundary Conditions for Gauge Theories

TL;DR

This paper introduces a systematic method for generating boundary conditions on gauge fields suitable for quantum field theory calculations involving manifolds with boundaries, including applications to linearized gravity.

Contribution

It presents a new systematic approach for deriving boundary conditions on gauge fields, applicable to one-loop effective actions and quantum cosmology, with novel conditions for linearized gravity.

Findings

Provides a systematic method for boundary condition generation.

Introduces new boundary conditions for linearized gravity.

Applicable to quantum cosmology and effective action calculations.

Abstract

A systematic way of generating sets of local boundary conditions on the gauge fields in a path integral is presented. These boundary conditions are suitable for one--loop effective action calculations on manifolds with boundary and for quantum cosmology. For linearised gravity, the general proceedure described here leads to new sets of boundary conditions.