We discuss the formulation of classical field theoretical models on $n$-dimensional noncommutative space-time defined by a generic associative star product. A simple procedure for deriving conservation laws is presented and applied to field theories in noncommutative space-time to obtain local conservation laws (for the electric charge and for the energy-momentum tensor of free fields) and more generally an energy-momentum balance equation for interacting fields. For free field models an analogy with the damped harmonic oscillator in classical mechanics is pointed out, which allows us to get a physical understanding for the obtained conservation laws. To conclude, the formulation of field theories on curved noncommutative space is addressed.
In this article we considered models of particles living in a three-dimensional space-time with a nonstandard noncommutativity induced by shifting canonical coordinates and momenta with generators of a unitary irreducible representation of the Lorentz group. The Hilbert space gets the structure of a direct product with the representation space, where we are able to construct operators which realize the algebra of Lorentz transformations. We study the modified Landau problem for both Schrodinger and Dirac particles, whose Hamiltonians are obtained through a kind of non-Abelian Bopps shift of the dynamical variables from the ones of the usual problem in the normal space. The spectrum of these models are considered in perturbation theory, both for small and large noncommutativity parameters. We find no constraint between the parameters referring to no-commutativity in coordinates and momenta but they rather play similar roles. Since the representation space of the unitary irreducible representations SL(2,R) can be realized in terms of spaces of square-integrable functions, we conclude that these models are equivalent to quantum mechanical models of particles living in a space with an additional compact dimension.
The fuzzy disc is a discretization of the algebra of functions on the two dimensional disc using finite matrices which preserves the action of the rotation group. We define a $varphi^4$ scalar field theory on it and analyze numerically for three different limits for the rank of the matrix going to infinity. The numerical simulations reveal three different phases: uniform and disordered phases already the present in the commutative scalar field theory and a nonuniform ordered phase as a noncommutative effects. We have computed the transition curves between phases and their scaling. This is in agreement with studies on the fuzzy sphere, although the speed of convergence for the disc seems to be better. We have performed also three the limits for the theory in the cases of the theory going to the commutative plane or commutative disc. In this case the theory behaves differently, showing the intimate relationship between the nonuniform phase and noncommutative geometry.
We continue our study of effective field theory via homotopy transfer of $L_infty$-algebras, and apply it to tree-level non-Wilsonian effective actions of the kind discussed by Sen in which the modes integrated out are comparable in mass to the modes that are kept. We focus on the construction of effective actions for string states at fixed levels and in particular on the construction of weakly constrained double field theory. With these examples in mind, we discuss closed string theory on toroidal backgrounds and resolve some subtle issues involving vertex operators, including the proper form of cocycle factors and of the reflector state. This resolves outstanding issues concerning the construction of covariant closed string field theory on toroidal backgrounds. The weakly constrained double field theory is formally obtained from closed string field theory on a toroidal background by integrating out all but the doubly massless states and homotopy transfer then gives a prescription for determining the theorys vertices and symmetries. We also discuss consistent truncation in the context of homotopy transfer.
We develop a new background independent Moyal star formalism in bosonic open string field theory. The new star product is formulated in a half-phase-space, and because phase space is independent of any background fields, the interactions are background independent. In this basis there is a large amount of symmetry, including a supersymmetry OSp(d|2) that acts on matter and ghost degrees of freedom, and simplifies computations. The BRST operator that defines the quadratic kinetic term of string field theory may be regarded as the solution of the equation of motion A*A=0 of a purely cubic background independent string field theory. We find an infinite number of non-perturbative solutions to this equation, and are able to associate them to the BRST operator of conformal field theories on the worldsheet. Thus, the background emerges from a spontaneous-type breaking of a purely cubic highly symmetric theory. The form of the BRST field breaks the symmetry in a tractable way such that the symmetry continues to be useful in practical perturbative computations as an expansion around some background. The new Moyal basis is called the $sigma $-basis, where $sigma$ is the worldsheet parameter of an open string. A vital part of the new star product is a natural and crucially needed mid-point regulator in this continuous basis, so that all computations are finite. The regulator is removed after renormalization and then the theory is finite only in the critical dimension. Boundary conditions for D-branes at the endpoints of the string are naturally introduced and made part of the theory as simple rules in algebraic computations. A byproduct of our approach is an astonishing suggestion of the formalism: the roots of ordinary quantum mechanics may originate in the rules of non-commutative interactions in string theory.
The expectation values of energy density and pressure of a quantum field inside a wedge-shaped region appear to violate the expected relationship between torque and total energy as a function of angle. In particular, this is true of the well-known Deutsch--Candelas stress tensor for the electromagnetic field, whose definition requires no regularization except possibly at the vertex. Unlike a similar anomaly in the pressure exerted by a reflecting boundary against a perpendicular wall, this problem cannot be dismissed as an artifact of an ad hoc regularization.