Friday, October 7, 2016

quantum field theory - masslessness of Goldstone boson, Effective action, and functional-integral measure


I have difficulty in understanding the path-integral formalism of SSB, and that of Effective Action.


Let's say a complex scalar field theory has the global U(1) SSB, L(ϕ)=(μϕ)2m2ϕϕ14(ϕϕ)2


The proof of the masslessness of Goldstone bosons associated with this theory usually uses the U(1) symmetry of the Effective action Γ[ϕ], which usually is proven by assuming that in the generating functional Z[J]=[DϕDϕ]eid4x[L(ϕ)+Jϕ+ϕJ]

the measure [DϕDϕ] is also invariant under ϕeiθϕ, and thereby proving the symmetry of Z[J] under JeiθJ.


But the problem is, if we assume [DϕDϕ] is invariant, we could easily get Ω|ϕ|Ω=eiθΩ|ϕ|Ω

, where Ω is the vacuum, and thus Ω|ϕ|Ω=0
,which obviously contradicts SSB.



Where did I get wrong, or how to correctly prove that the effective action Γ[ϕ] indeed has the U(1) symmetry?


PS:
let me make my question clearer.
The fact is that we don't really need the generating functional Z[J] to calculate the VEV, we can simply go back to the functional-integral version of the VEV:
VEV=[DϕDϕ] ϕ eiS[ϕ]

without doting about J.
Now the measure [DϕDϕ] (and its region/asymptotic behavior) appearing in (3) is the same as that in (1), so if we assume its invariance to prove the symmetry of Z[J], we can as well use it to prove (2). The proof (if I'm right) goes like this:


(3) just calculates VEV as a expect value of ϕ, since everything is in the integral, the variables ϕ are dummy, we can just rename ϕ as ϕ without affecting anything: VEV=[DϕDϕ] ϕ eiS[ϕ]

next is the real stuff:
we make a variable transformation
ϕ=eiθϕ
and get VEV=[D(eiθϕ)D(eiθϕ)] eiθϕ eiS[eiθϕ]
now according to our assumption [D(eiθϕ)D(eiθϕ)]=[DϕDϕ]
and      S[eiθϕ]=S[ϕ]
we have, from (6), VEV=[DϕDϕ] eiθϕ eiS[ϕ]=eiθ[DϕDϕ] ϕ eiS[ϕ]=eiθVEV
thus we see that VEV=0
as in (2).
Looking back, (7) holds only if the functional integral is over an symmetrical region/class of field configurations ϕ(x), for example, if the integral is over all field configurations that vanish at infinity, ϕ()=0.

So my conclusion is that, since (8) contradicts SSB, the functional integration region shouldn't be invariant under ϕeiθϕ, and thus picks up a particular/favored "orientation" in field's configurations, and thereby yields an nonzero VEV.
But if this is the case, I don't understand how the effective action Γ[ϕ] has the delightful property that it has the same symmetry as the classical action S[ϕ].




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