Perturbation theory in supersymmetric QED: Infrared divergences and gauge invariance

Michael Dine, Patrick Draper, Howard E. Haber, Laurel Stephenson Haskins

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We study some aspects of perturbation theory in N=1 supersymmetric Abelian gauge theories with massive charged matter. In general gauges, infrared (IR) divergences and nonlocal behavior arise in one particle irreducible (1PI) diagrams, associated with a 1/k4 term in the propagator for the vector superfield. We examine this structure in supersymmetric QED. The IR divergences are gauge dependent and must cancel in physical quantities like the electron pole mass. We demonstrate that cancellation takes place in a nontrivial way, amounting to a reorganization of the perturbative series from powers of e2 to powers of e. We also show how these complications are avoided in cases where a Wilsonian effective action can be defined.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number095003
JournalPhysical Review D
Volume94
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 3 2016
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)

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