Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2010 / iii / Paper 46 / 3

Use $\hslash =c=1$ and normalize the interaction of quartic scalar field theory as $\lambda {\varphi }^4/4!$. For a renormalized $n$-point connected correlation function, adopt ${\varphi }_B=Z_{\varphi }^{1/2}{\varphi }_R$ and ${\gamma }_{\varphi }=\frac{1}{2}\mu d\log Z_{\varphi }/d\mu$. Independence of bare quantities from the renormalization scale gives the Callan-Symanzik equationwhere $\beta =\mu d\lambda /d\mu$ and ${\gamma }_{m^2}=\mu d\log m^2/d\mu$, with bare parameters fixed. A convention using proper vertices reverses the field-normalization term, so the choice of Green's function must be stated.

Solve it by characteristics: set $\mu (s)={\mu }_0{e}^s$, $d\lambda (s)/ds=\beta (\lambda (s))$, and $d\log m^2(s)/ds={\gamma }_{m^2}(\lambda (s))$. At fixed external momenta,This is the characteristic solution of the multiplicative Callan-Symanzik equation. If the field anomalous dimension vanishes, the function is constant along the running-parameter characteristics. At a massless fixed point with constant anomalous dimension, the normalization factor is a power of $\mu /{\mu }_0$. Choosing the scale close to a characteristic external momentum avoids large perturbative logarithms.

For the supplied minimal subtraction scheme relation in dimensional regularization with $d=4-ϵ$, let $a=3/(16{\pi }^2)$ and write ${\lambda }_B={\mu }^{ϵ}[\lambda +a{\lambda }^2/ϵ+O({\lambda }^3)]$. Differentiating at fixed bare coupling givesA consistent expansion yields $\beta =-ϵ\lambda +a{\lambda }^2+O({\lambda }^3)$. The $-ϵ\lambda$ term must be retained while it multiplies the pole; setting $ϵ=0$ prematurely loses the finite result. In four dimensions the one-loop quartic scalar beta function isThe one-loop two-point diagram is a momentum-independent tadpole diagram, so there is no field wavefunction renormalization at this order and ${\gamma }_{\varphi }=O({\lambda }^2)$. Differentiating the supplied bare-mass relation in the same way gives ${\gamma }_{m^2}=\lambda /(16{\pi }^2)+O({\lambda }^2)$.

Integrating $d\lambda /d\log \mu =a{\lambda }^2$ gives the running couplingFor positive coupling it grows toward the ultraviolet and decreases toward the infrared: the theory is not asymptotically free. Its one-loop Landau pole lies at ${\mu }_L={\mu }_0\exp [16{\pi }^2/(3\lambda ({\mu }_0))]$. Perturbation theory fails before reaching that pole, so the pole in this approximation alone does not prove the existence of an exact physical divergence. The corresponding one-loop running mass satisfiesIt follows from $d\log m^2/d\lambda =1/(3\lambda )$. The mass-independent subtraction scheme keeps these beta functions independent of the mass; physical low-energy matching can still require threshold treatment. Running parameters resum the leading logarithms within the regime of small coupling.