I answer the question in the title for the relativistic Bose gas at finite chemical potential using numerical lattice simulations, complemented with analytical understanding.
Using complex Langevin method we probe the possibility of dynamical supersymmetry breaking in supersymmetric quantum mechanics models with complex actions. The models we consider are invariant under the combined operation of parity and time reversal, in addition to supersymmetry. When actions are complex traditional Monte Carlo methods based on importance sampling fail. Models with dynamically broken supersymmetry can exhibit sign problem due to the vanishing of the partition function. Complex Langevin method can successfully evade the sign problem. Our simulations suggest that complex Langevi…
The Lefschetz thimble method, i.e., the integration along the steepest descent cycles, is an idea to evade the sign problem by complexifying the theory. We discuss that such steepest descent cycles can be identified as ground-state wave-functions of a supersymmetric Hamilton dynamics, which is described with a framework akin to the complex Langevin method. We numerically construct the wave-functions on a grid using a toy model and confirm their well-localized behavior.
Progress in the application of the complex Langevin method to full QCD at non-zero chemical potential is reported. The method evades the sign problem which makes naive simulations at nonzero density impossible. The procedure 'gauge cooling' is used to stabilize the simulations at small enough lattice spacings. The method allows simulations also at high densities, all the way up to saturation. Simulations in a systematic hopping parameter expansion are also performed and good convergence is observed, validating the full as well as the expanded simulations.
Simulations of full QCD at nonzero baryon density using light quark masses are presented. The sign problem is evaded by the usage of the complex Langevin equation. The simulations are stabilized by the gauge cooling procedure for small lattice spacings. The method allows simulations at high densities, up to the saturation. The sign average is measured in the full as well as the phasequenched theory. Results are compared to the HQCD approach, in which the spatial hopping terms of fermionic variables are dropped, and good agreement is found at large masses.
The IKKT matrix model, in the large-$N$ limit, is conjectured to be a non-perturbative definition of the ten-dimensional type IIB superstring theory. In this work, we investigate the possibility of spontaneous breaking of the ten-dimensional rotational symmetry in the Euclidean IKKT model. Since the effective action, after integrating out the fermions, is inherently complex, we use the complex Langevin dynamics to study the model. In order to evade the singular-drift problem in the model, we add supersymmetry preserving deformations and then take the vanishing limit of the deformations. Our an…
We investigate a polaronic excitation in a one-dimensional spin-1/2 Fermi gas with contact attractive interactions, using the complex Langevin method, which is a promising approach to evade a possible sign problem in quantum Monte Carlo simulations. We found that the complex Langevin method works correctly in a wide range of temperature, interaction strength, and population imbalance. The Fermi polaron energy extracted from the two-point imaginary Green's function is not sensitive to the temperature and the impurity concentration in the parameter region we considered. Our results show a good a…
A nonperturbative study of field theories with a complex action, such as QCD at finite baryon density, is difficult due to the sign problem. We show that the relativistic Bose gas at finite chemical potential has a sign and `Silver Blaze' problem, similar to QCD. We then apply stochastic quantization and complex Langevin dynamics to study this theory with nonperturbative lattice simulations. Independence of chemical potential at small and a transition to a condensed phase at large chemical potential are found. Lattices of size N^4, with N=4,6,8,10, are used. We show that the sign problem is se…
Recent progress of the complex Langevin method and the Lefschetz thimble in connection with the sign problem is reviewed. These methods rely on the complexification of the original field manifold and they allow direct simulations of theories with non-real measures. Similarities and differences of the two approaches are pointed out. Results using the complex Langevin method, which allows simulations to evade the sign problem in full QCD, are presented. Promising results of the thimble approach for non-gauge theories are also discussed.
A brief overview of the QCD phase diagram at nonzero temperature and density is provided. It is explained why standard lattice QCD techniques are not immediately applicable for its determination, due to the sign problem. We then discuss a selection of recent lattice approaches that attempt to evade the sign problem and classify them according to the underlying principle: constrained simulations (density of states, histograms), holomorphicity (complex Langevin, Lefschetz thimbles), partial summations (clusters, subsets, bags) and change in integration order (strong coupling, dual formulations).
We demonstrate analytically that complex Langevin dynamics can solve the sign problem in one-dimensional QCD in the thermodynamic limit. In particular, it is shown that the contributions from the complex and highly oscillating spectral density of the Dirac operator to the chiral condensate are taken into account correctly. We find an infinite number of classical fixed points of the Langevin flow in the thermodynamic limit. The correct solution originates from a continuum of degenerate distributions in the complexified space.
At nonzero chemical potential the numerical sign problem in lattice field theory limits the use of standard algorithms based on importance sampling. Complex Langevin dynamics provides a possible solution, but it has to be applied with care. In this review, we first summarise our current understanding of the approach, combining analytical and numerical insight. In the second part we study SL(N,C) gauge cooling, which was introduced recently as a tool to control complex Langevin dynamics in nonabelian gauge theories. We present new results in Polyakov chain models and in QCD with heavy quarks an…
I review the presence of the sign problem in lattice QCD at nonzero baryon density and its relation with the overlap and Silver Blaze problems. I then discuss progress in some cases where the sign problem can be handled, either because the sign problem is absent or because it is milder than in full QCD. Some time is spent on effective three-dimensional models, which can be treated with a variety of methods. I conclude with a discussion of the applicability of complex Langevin dynamics at nonzero density.
We show that complex Langevin simulation converges to a wrong result, by relating it to the Lefschetz-thimble path integral, when the path-integral weight has different phases among dominant complex saddle points. Equilibrium solution of the complex Langevin equation forms local distributions around complex saddle points. Its ensemble average approximately becomes a direct sum of the average in each local distribution, where relative phases among them are dropped. We propose that by taking these phases into account through reweighting, we can solve the wrong convergence problem. However, this …
QCD at nonzero baryon chemical potential suffers from the sign problem, due to the complex quark determinant. Complex Langevin dynamics can provide a solution, provided certain conditions are met. One of these conditions, holomorphicity of the Langevin drift, is absent in QCD since zeroes of the determinant result in a meromorphic drift. We first derive how poles in the drift affect the formal justification of the approach and then explore the various possibilities in simple models. The lessons from these are subsequently applied to both heavy dense QCD and full QCD, and we find that the resul…
We propose a path optimization method (POM) to evade the sign problem in the Monte-Carlo calculations for complex actions. Among many approaches to the sign problem, the Lefschetz-thimble path-integral method and the complex Langevin method are promising and extensively discussed. In these methods, real field variables are complexified and the integration manifold is determined by the flow equations or stochastically sampled. When we have singular points of the action or multiple critical points near the original integral surface, however, we have a risk to encounter the residual and global si…
We consider the massive Thirring model at finite density in 0+1 dimension. The fermion bag approach, Langevin dynamics and complex Langevin dynamics are adopted to attack the sign problem for this model. Compared with the complex Langevin dynamics, both fermion bag approach and Langvin dynamics avoid the sign problem. The fermion density and chiral condensate, which are obtained by these numerical methods, are compared with the exact results. The advantages of the fermion bag approach over the other numerical methods are also discussed.
The three-dimensional XY model is studied at finite chemical potential using complex Langevin dynamics. The validity of the approach is probed at small chemical potential using imaginary chemical potential and continuity arguments, and at larger chemical potential by comparison with the world line method. While complex Langevin works for larger beta, we find that it fails for smaller beta, in the region of the phase diagram corresponding to the disordered phase. Diagnostic tests are developed to identify symptoms correlated with incorrect convergence. We argue that the erroneous behaviour at s…
Lefschetz thimbles and complex Langevin dynamics both provide a means to tackle the numerical sign problem prevalent in theories with a complex weight in the partition function, e.g. due to nonzero chemical potential. Here we collect some findings for the quartic model, and for U(1) and SU(2) models in the presence of a determinant, which have some features not discussed before, due to a singular drift. We find evidence for a relation between classical runaways and stable thimbles, and give an example of a degenerate fixed point. We typically find that the distributions sampled in complex Lang…
We review the theory and applications of complex stochastic quantization to the quantum many-body problem. Along the way, we present a brief overview of a number of ideas that either ameliorate or in some cases altogether solve the sign problem, including the classic reweighting method, alternative Hubbard-Stratonovich transformations, dual variables (for bosons and fermions), Majorana fermions, density-of-states methods, imaginary asymmetry approaches, and Lefschetz thimbles. We discuss some aspects of the mathematical underpinnings of conventional stochastic quantization, provide a few pedag…
Self-interacting scalar quantum field theories possessing $PT$-symmetry are physically admissible since their energy spectrum is real and bounded below. However, models with $PT$-invariant potentials can have complex actions in general and a non-perturbative study of such systems using methods based on traditional Monte Carlo is hindered due to numerical sign problem. In this work we employ complex Langevin based on stochastic quantization to study two-dimensional scalar field theories, including the ones exhibiting $PT$-symmetry. We also study the simplest supersymmetric version of these syst…
Quantum Monte Carlo calculations in the nuclear shell model by the complex Langevin method
Institute of Pure and Applied Sciences, University of Tsukuba(筑波大学理学院);Tomonaga Center for the History of the Universe, University of Tsukuba(筑波大学东田中心宇宙史研究中心);National Institute of Technology, Tokuyama College(国立山口技术短期大学校德山校区);KEK Theory Center, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization(高能加速器研究机构KEK理论中心);Graduate Institute for Advanced Studies, SOKENDAI(综合研究大学院大学高等研究院);Center for Computational Sciences, University of Tsukuba(筑波大学计算科学中心)
The type IIB matrix model has been proposed as a non-perturbative definition of superstring theory since 1996. We study a simplified model that describes the late time behavior of the type IIB matrix model non-perturbatively using Monte Carlo methods, and we use the complex Langevin method to overcome the sign problem. We investigate a scenario where the space-time signature changes dynamically from Euclidean at early times to Lorentzian at late times. We discuss the possibility of the emergence of the (3+1)D expanding universe.
Recently there has been remarkable progress in solving the sign problem, which occurs in investigating statistical systems with a complex weight. The two promising methods, the complex Langevin method and the Lefschetz thimble method, share the idea of complexifying the dynamical variables, but their relationship has not been clear. Here we propose a unified formulation, in which the sign problem is taken care of by both the Langevin dynamics and the holomorphic gradient flow. We apply our formulation to a simple model in three different ways and show that one of them interpolates the two meth…
The sign problem at nonzero chemical potential prohibits the use of importance sampling in lattice simulations. Since complex Langevin dynamics does not rely on importance sampling, it provides a potential solution. Recently it was shown that complex Langevin dynamics fails in the disordered phase in the case of the three-dimensional XY model, while it appears to work in the entire phase diagram in the case of the three-dimensional SU(3) spin model. Here we analyse this difference and argue that it is due to the presence of the nontrivial Haar measure in the SU(3) case, which has a stabilizing…
The sign problem of QCD prevents standard lattice simulations to determine the phase diagram of strong interactions with a finite chemical potential directly. Complex Langevin simulations provide an alternative method to sample path integrals with complex weights. We report on our ongoing project to determine the phase diagram of QCD in the limit of heavy quarks (HDQCD) using Complex Langevin simulations.
Complex Langevin methods have been successfully applied in theories that suffer from a sign problem such as QCD with a chemical potential. We present and illustrate a novel method (dynamic stabilisation) that ensures that Complex Langevin simulations stay close to the SU(3) manifold, which lead to correct and improved results in the framework of pure Yang-Mills simulations and QCD in the limit of heavy quarks.
In recent years the complex Langevin method (CLM) has proven a powerful method in studying statistical systems which suffer from the sign problem. Here we show that it can also be applied to an important problem concerning why we live in four-dimensional spacetime. Our target system is the type IIB matrix model, which is conjectured to be a nonperturbative definition of type IIB superstring theory in ten dimensions. The fermion determinant of the model becomes complex upon Euclideanization, which causes a severe sign problem in its Monte Carlo studies. It is speculated that the phase of the fe…
The complex Langevin method and the generalized Lefschetz-thimble method are two closely related approaches to the sign problem, which are both based on complexification of the original dynamical variables. The former can be viewed as a generalization of the stochastic quantization using the Langevin equation, whereas the latter is a deformation of the integration contour using the so-called holomorphic gradient flow. In order to clarify their relationship, we propose a formulation which combines the two methods by applying the former method to the real variables that parametrize the deformed …
Effective Polyakov line models, derived from SU(3) gauge-matter systems at finite chemical potential, have a sign problem. In this article I solve two such models, derived from SU(3) gauge-Higgs and heavy quark theories by the relative weights method, over a range of chemical potentials where the sign problem is severe. Two values of the gauge-Higgs coupling are considered, corresponding to a heavier and a lighter scalar particle. Each model is solved via the complex Langevin method, following the approach of Aarts and James, and also by a mean field technique. It is shown that where the resul…
We propose two novel formulations of the hopping parameter expansion for finite density QCD using Wilson fermions, while keeping the gauge action intact. We use the complex Langevin equation to circumvent the sign problem in the theory. We perform simulations at very high order of the expansion, such that convergence is directly observable. We compare results to the full QCD results, and see agreement at sufficiently high orders. These results provide support for the use of complex Langevin dynamics to study QCD at nonzero density, both in the full and the expanded theory, and for the converge…
The Lorentzian type IIB matrix model has been studied as a promising candidate for a nonperturbative formulation of superstring theory. In particular, the emergence of (3+1)D expanding space-time was observed by Monte Carlo studies of this model. It has been found recently, however, that the matrix configurations generated by the simulation is singular in that the submatrices representing the expanding 3D space have only two large eigenvalues associated with the Pauli matrices. This problem has been attributed to the approximation used to avoid the sign problem in simulating the model. Here we…
We calculate the finite-temperature density and polarization equations of state of one-dimensional fermions with a zero-range interaction, considering both attractive and repulsive regimes. In the path-integral formulation of the grand-canonical ensemble, a finite chemical potential asymmetry makes these systems intractable for standard Monte Carlo approaches due to the sign problem. Although the latter can be removed in one spatial dimension, we consider the one-dimensional situation in the present work to provide an efficient test for studies of the higher-dimensional counterparts. To overco…
Exploring the phase diagram of QCD at finite density is a challenging problem since first-principle calculations based on standard Monte Carlo methods suffer from the sign problem. As a promising approach to this issue, the complex Langevin method (CLM) has been pursued intensively.In this work, we investigate the applicability of the CLM in the vicinity of the deconfinement phase transition using the four-flavor staggered fermions. In particular, we look for a signal of the expected first order phase transition within the validity region of the CLM.
Complex Langevin dynamics can solve the sign problem appearing in numerical simulations of theories with a complex action. In order to justify the procedure, it is important to understand the properties of the real and positive distribution, which is effectively sampled during the stochastic process. In the context of a simple model, we study this distribution by solving the Fokker-Planck equation as well as by brute force and relate the results to the recently derived criteria for correctness. We demonstrate analytically that it is possible that the distribution has support in a strip in the …
Stochastic quantization can potentially be used to simulate theories with a complex action due to a nonzero chemical potential. We study complex Langevin dynamics in the relativistic Bose gas analytically, using a mean field approximation. We concentrate on the region with a Silver Blaze problem and discuss convergence, stability, fixed points, and the severeness of the sign problem. The real distribution satisfying the extended Fokker-Planck equation is constructed and its nonlocal form is explained. Finally, we compare the mean field results in finite volume with the numerical data presented…
The complex Langevin method is one hopeful candidate to tackle the sign problem. This method is applicable not only to QCD but also to nonrelativistic field theory, such as condensed matter physics. We present the simulation results of a rotating Bose gas and an imbalanced Fermi-Hubbard model.
The three-dimensional SU(3) spin model is an effective Polyakov loop model for QCD at nonzero temperature and density. It suffers from a sign problem at nonzero chemical potential. We revisit this model using complex Langevin dynamics and assess in particular the justification of this approach, using analyticity at small mu^2 and the criteria for correctness developed recently. Finite-stepsize effects are discussed in some detail and a higher-order algorithm is employed to eliminate leading stepsize corrections. Our results strongly indicate that complex Langevin dynamics is reliable in this t…
We develop a way of improving complex Langevin dynamics motivated by the Lefschetz-thimble decomposition of integrals. In our method, arbitrary observables of an original model with multiple Lefschetz thimbles are computed by a modified model with a single thimble. We apply our modification method to a one dimensional integral in which the naive implementation of the complex Langevin dynamics fails to reproduce the exact results due to the severe sign problem. We show that the toy model can be modified so that the new model consists of a single Lefschetz thimble. We find that correct results c…
We analyze to what extent the complex Langevin method, which is in principle capable of solving the so-called sign problems, can be considered as reliable. We give a formal derivation of the correctness and then point out various mathematical loopholes. The detailed study of some simple examples leads to practical suggestions about the application of the method.
Monte Carlo studies of QCD at finite density suffer from the sign problem, which becomes easily uncontrollable as the chemical potential $μ$ is increased even for a moderate lattice size. In this work we make an attempt to approach the high density low temperature region by the complex Langevin method (CLM) using four-flavor staggered fermions with reasonably small quark mass on a $8^3 \times 16$ lattice. Unlike the previous work on a $4^3 \times 8$ lattice, the criterion for correct convergence is satisfied within a wide range of $μ$ without using the deformation technique. In particular, the…
Lattice simulations of non-zero density QCD introduce the so-called sign problem (complex or negative probabilities), which invalidates importance sampling methods. To circumvent this, we use the Complex Langevin Equation (CLE), to measure the boundary terms and then compare these results with the ones gotten from reweighting, confirming the expectations from previous studies. We also investigate boundary terms in simulations using CLE with dynamic stabilization and compare this, to results calculated with reweighting.
Thermodynamic Diagnostics for Complex Langevin Simulations: The Role of Configurational Temperature
National Institute for Theoretical and Computational Sciences, School of Physics, and Mandelstam Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of the Witwatersrand(威特沃特斯兰德大学理论计算科学国家研究所、物理学院和曼德尔斯坦理论物理研究所);Key Laboratory of Quark and Lepton Physics (MOE) and Institute of Particle Physics, Central China Normal University(华中师范大学夸克与轻子物理教育部重点实验室及粒子物理研究所)
Standard lattice formulations of non-relativistic Fermi gases with two spin components suffer from a sign problem in the cases of repulsive contact interactions and attractive contact interactions with spin imbalance. We discuss the nature of this sign problem and the applicability of stochastic quantisation with complex Langevin evolution in both cases. For repulsive interactions, we find that the results converge, using adaptive step size scaling and a Gaussian regulator to modify the lattice action. We present results on density profiles and correlations of a harmonically trapped system in …
We present our latest results on the application of the complex Langevin method to one- and two-dimensional QCD. Although the method is stable, it unfortunately converges to an incorrect result when applied as such. After applying additional gauge cooling steps, the results agree with the known analytical results in the one-dimensional case. However, in the two-dimensional case the disagreement subsists, even with gauge cooling, when the sign problem is sufficiently large.
The three-dimensional XY model is studied at finite chemical potential using complex Langevin dynamics. An adaptive stepsize algorithm is implemented to cure the problem of runaway solutions that appears when using a constant stepsize. The validity of complex Langevin dynamics is tested against calculations using imaginary chemical potential and the world line formalism. While complex Langevin dynamics is found to work correctly at larger beta, it fails for smaller beta, in the region of the phase diagram corresponding to the disordered phase. Diagnostic tests are developed to identify behavio…
The sign problem appears in lattice QCD as soon as a non-zero chemical potential is introduced. This prevents direct simulations to determine the phase structure of the strongly interacting matter. Complex Langevin methods have been successfully used for various models or approximations of QCD. However, in some scenarios it converges to incorrect results. We present developments of our new method that helps to improve the convergence by keeping the system closer to the SU(3) manifold and discuss preliminary tests and results.
In this paper we test the complex Langevin algorithm for numerical simulations of a random matrix model of QCD with a first order phase transition to a phase of finite baryon density. We observe that a naive implementation of the algorithm leads to phase quenched results, which were also derived analytically in this article. We test several fixes for the convergence issues of the algorithm, in particular the method of gauge cooling, the shifted representation, the deformation technique and reweighted complex Langevin, but only the latter method reproduces the correct analytical results in the …
We present lattice simulations on the phase diagram of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) with two light quark flavours at finite chemical potential $μ$. To circumvent the sign problem we use the complex Langevin method. In this study, we have carried out finite density lattice computations for a pion mass of $\sim 480$ MeV. We report on the pressure, energy and entropy equations of state in ab-initio lattice QCD calculations, as well as the observation of the Silver Blaze phenomenon.
Complex Langevin simulations have been able to successfully reproduce results from Monte Carlo methods in the region where the sign problem is mild and make predictions when it is exponentially hard. We present here our study of the QCD phase diagram and the boundary between the confined and deconfined phases in the limit of heavy and dense quarks (HDQCD) for 3 different lattice volumes. We also briefly discuss instabilities encountered in our simulations.
Monte Carlo methods cannot probe far into the QCD phase diagram with a real chemical potential, due to the famous sign problem. Complex Langevin simulations, using adaptive step-size scaling and gauge cooling, are suited for sampling path integrals with complex weights. We report here on tests of the deconfinement transition in pure Yang-Mills SU(3) simulations and present an update on the QCD phase diagram in the limit of heavy and dense quarks.
The complex Langevin method is a leading candidate for solving the sign problem occurring in various physical situations, notably QCD at finite chemical potential. Its most vexing problem is `convergence to the wrong limit', where the simulation gives a well defined, but incorrect, result. Here, we first outline a formal justification of the method and identify points at which it might fail. From these we derive a condition that must be satisfied in order for correct results to be obtained. We then apply these ideas to the three-imensional SU(3) spin model at finite chemical potential and show…
Although the complex Langevin method can solve the sign problem in simulations of theories with complex actions, the method will yield the wrong results if known validity conditions are not satisfied. We present a novel method to compute observables for a target ensemble by reweighting complex trajectories generated with the complex Langevin method for an auxiliary ensemble having itself a complex action. While it is imperative that the validity conditions be satisfied for the auxiliary ensemble, there are no such requirements for the target ensemble. This allows us to enlarge the applicabilit…
We study the deconfinement transition line in QCD for quark chemical potentials up to $μ_q \sim 5 T$ ($μ_B \sim 15 T$). To circumvent the sign problem we use the complex Langevin equation with gauge cooling. The plaquette gauge action is used with two flavors of naive Wilson fermions at a relatively heavy pion mass of roughly 1.3 GeV. A quadratic dependence describes the transition line well on the whole chemical potential range.
We analyze the pressure and density equations of state of unpolarized non-relativistic fermions at finite temperature in one spatial dimension. For attractively interacting regimes, we perform a third-order lattice perturbation theory calculation, assess its convergence properties by comparing with hybrid Monte Carlo results (there is no sign problem in this regime), and demonstrate agreement with real Langevin calculations. For repulsive interactions, we present lattice perturbation theory results as well as complex Langevin calculations, with a modified action to prevent uncontrolled excursi…