Superspace formulation of general massive gauge theories and geometric interpretation of mass-dependent BRST symmetries

TL;DR

This paper develops a superspace formulation for massive gauge theories, revealing how mass-dependent BRST symmetries and gauge transformations can be understood as geometric invariances within a superspace framework.

Contribution

It introduces a superspace approach to describe mass-dependent BRST symmetries in massive gauge theories, linking algebraic symmetries to geometric invariances.

Findings

Superspace formulation for osp(1,2)-covariant quantization.

Realization of BRST symmetries as superspace invariances.

Explicit transformation rules for gauge and ghost fields.

Abstract

A superspace formulation is proposed for the osp(1,2)-covariant Lagrangian quantization of general massive gauge theories. The superalgebra os0(1,2) is considered as subalgebra of sl(1,2); the latter may be considered as the algebra of generators of the conformal group in a superspace with two anticommuting coordinates. The mass-dependent (anti)BRST symmetries of proper solutions of the quantum master equations in the osp(1,2)-covariant formalism are realized in that superspace as invariance under translations combined with mass-dependent special conformal transformations. The Sp(2) symmetry - in particular the ghost number conservation - and the "new ghost number" conservation are realized as invariance under symplectic rotations and dilatations, respectively. The transformations of the gauge fields - and of the full set of necessarily required (anti)ghost and auxiliary fields - under the superalgebra sl(1,2) are determined both for irreducible and first-stage reducible theories with closed gauge algebra.