Faddeev-Popov gauge-orbit identity

ID: faddeev-popov-gauge-orbit-identity

Suppose a gauge fixing condition intersects each gauge orbit once in the local region under consideration, and its linearized Faddeev-Popov operator has no residual zero modes after boundary conditions are imposed. The functional Jacobian for changing from the gauge transformation parameter to the gauge condition gives the displayed identity. Inserting it in a gauge-invariant functional integral allows the integration along the gauge orbit to factor out and cancel the formal gauge-group volume. In a perturbative neighborhood the Jacobian's sign or phase is fixed; a field-independent determinant factor is absorbed into normalization. The Gribov ambiguity prevents treating this local identity as a globally unique gauge choice without further qualifications.

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