Finite-temperature behavior of the (2+1)D Georgi-Glashow model with and without quarks

TL;DR

This paper investigates the finite-temperature properties of the (2+1)D Georgi-Glashow model, revealing new phase transition phenomena and effects of quark inclusion, with implications for understanding gauge theories at nonzero temperatures.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of how finite Higgs mass and quark presence alter phase transitions and vacuum properties in the (2+1)D Georgi-Glashow model.

Findings

Identification of two separate phase transitions.

Discovery of an upper bound on weak-coupling parameters.

Effects of massless quarks on finite-temperature behavior.

Abstract

(2+1)-dimensional Georgi-Glashow model and its SU(N)-generalization are explored at nonzero temperatures and in the regime when the Higgs boson is not infinitely heavy. The finiteness of the Higgs-boson mass leads to various novel effects. Those include the appearance of two separate phase transitions and of the upper bound on the parameter of the weak-coupling approximation, necessary to maintain the stochasticity of the Higgs vacuum. The modification of the finite-temperature behavior of the model emerging due to the introduction of massless quarks is also discussed.