Flux tubes and topological charges in finite-temperature lattice QCD

TL;DR

This paper investigates topological properties and flux tube formation in finite-temperature lattice QCD, revealing flux tube behavior below deconfinement temperature and its breaking with dynamical quarks at larger distances.

Contribution

It provides new insights into topological charge distribution and flux tube dynamics in finite-temperature lattice QCD with and without dynamical quarks.

Findings

Flux tubes form below the deconfinement temperature.

Flux tubes break when quark-antiquark separation increases with dynamical quarks.

Topological charge density distribution reflects flux tube presence.

Abstract

Topological properties of the vacuum were investigated in finite-temperature lattice QCD without and with dynamical quarks using a local operator of topological charge density and a variant of cooling. Below the deconfinement temperature evidence for flux tube formation was observed in the distribution of topological charge density around a static $Q\bar Q$ pair. With dynamical quarks, the flux tube breaks when the distance between the static quark and antiquark increases.