4.

1 v1

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4.3 v1

Physics 615
Oct. 26, 2006
Homework Solutions #7
1
[20 pts] Do problem 4.3 from Peskin and Schroeder. This is one of the
simpler examples of a model with spontaneous symmetry breaking.
Solution 1 (a) We are going to explore the linear sigma model, based
on N real scalar fields1 i (x) and their conjugate momenta i , with the
Hamiltonian
Z

H=

1X i 2 1X ~ i 2
dx
( ) +
( ) + V (2 ) ,
2 i
2 i
3

with

V (2 ) = m2 2 + (2 )2 .
2
4
P
2
i 2
Note that here means i ( ) and not, of course, the i = 2 component of
. This Hamiltonian (and the associated Lagrangian) are clearly invariant
under global rotations of i in the N dimensional space.
When m2 > 0 and 0, the Hamiltonian reduces to a sum of N independent pieces each depending on just one of the N real scalar fields i , and
each piece is simply the free Klein-Gordon Hamiltonian. Thus the interaction
picture fields can be expanded as usual in terms of N sets of creation and
annihilation operators aip~ and aip~ , with the different fields commuting with
each other,
h
i
aip~, ajp~0 = (2)3 ij 3 (~
p ~p 0 ).
Thus the contractions of i with j give 0 unless i = j, in which case they
give the usual free Klein Gordon propagator
DF (xy) = I (x)I (y) = h0| T I (x)I (y) |0i =
1

d4 p
1
eip(xy) .
4
2
2
(2) p m + i

I will use the books notation with a superscript i, i , though I dont understand why
they did not use a subscript.

615: Homework Sol. #7

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

The interaction hamiltonian is the term in V , so each factor brought

down from the exponential gives

i
4

d4 z

a (x)a (x)b (x)b (x).

ab

When this factor is contracted with 4 other fields i j k ` , (or external

states |~p, ji), there are 4! ways these other fields can choose among the four
in the interaction vertex. The first, i , has 4 equivalent choices. The second,
j can then either choose the one with the same index in the interaction,
giving a ij , or it has two choices for selecting one of the two with the other
index. In the first case the third field, k has two choices, and then ` can
couple only to the one remaining, giving 8 ij k` , while in the second case,
the k can couple to the one field with index paired to the i or to the one
paired with j , giving 8 ik j` + 8 i` jk . All together, therefore, the vertex is
k

= 2i( ij k` + ik j` + i` jk )
j

The differential cross section for two equal mass particles is

d
d
with

=
CM

|M|2
,
2
64 2 Ecm

M = 2( ij k` + ik j` + i` jk ).

For i = k = 1, j = ` = 2, the factor in parentheses is just 1, which is also the

case for i = j = 1, k = ` = 2, while for i = j = k = ` = 1, the parenthesis
gives 3, so
d
d
d
d

(1 + 2 1 + 2) =
!CM

d
d

(1 + 1 2 + 2) =
CM

92
(1 + 1 1 + 1) =
.
2
16 2 Ecm
CM

2
,
2
16 2 Ecm

615: Homework Sol. #7

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

(b) The situation is changed if the mass term in

the potential is negative,

(v)

V (2 ) = 2 2 + (2 )2 .
2
4

Then expanding about i = 0 is an unstable equilibrium, and a lower energy state would be one for
which we have quantum fluctuations about a configuration with V minimized,
that is, with 2 = v 2 := 2 /. Of course the values of with this square
are the values on a hypersphere2 We choose to expand about the point =
(0, 0, . . . , 0, v) and define
(x) = N (x) v,

j (x) = j

for j = 1, ..., N 1.

In terms of these reexpressed fields, the Lagrangian becomes

Z

L =

1
1
1 NX

+
dx
j j V (, { j })
2
2 j=1
3

with
V (, { j })

=
=

v=/

i
i2
1 h
h
2 (v + )2 + 2 +
(v + )2 + 2
2
4
1 2 2
1 2 2 1 2 2
2
v v
2
2
2
4
3 2 2

3
+ v + v + v + v 3 + 4
4
2
4
2 2

+ v + v 2 + 2 2 + ( 2 )2
2
2
4
3
1 2 2 1 2 2
1 4

2
2
2

3
32 2
4

+ 3 + 4
+ + +
4
2
4

+ 2 + 2 + 2 2 + ( 2 )2
2
2
4

(1)

(2)

(3)

2
I am using sphere as mathematicians do, for the locus of points with ~r 2 = R2 , which
in freshman physics we call a spherical shell. The locus of points with ~r 2 R2 is called a
ball.

615: Homework Sol. #7

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

2 2 4 2 2
( ) + +
4
2
42

+ + 3
+2 2
4
.
4

(4)

I have written these in terms on the power of fields. The first line contains
the four-particle interactions, while the second line contains three particle
interactions. The next line is the mass term for the , but notice that the
mass associated with the fields j , that is, the coefficient of 2 , vanishes.
Also notice that the term linear in vanishes, as it must, because we chose v
as the minimum of V . Finally there is a shift in the vacuum energy density,
which is now negative (relative to the energy of the state with j = 0).
Thus if we now do perturbation theory by expanding around interaction
picture fields evolving under the terms quadratic in and j , treating the
cubic and quartic terms as the
interaction hamiltonian, we have a theory
with one scalar field of mass 2 , N 1 massless fields j , and interaction
terms
k
l

j
i
2i( ij k` +
ik j` + i` jk )

j i

i
2i ij

2i ij

6i

6i

with propagators
:
p2

i
+ i

and :

11
00
p2

i
22 + i

(c) There
are four diagrams that contribute
to the scattering amplitude


i
j
k
`
iM (p1 ) + (p2 ) (p3 ) + (p4 ) = iM1 + iM2 + iM3 + iM4 , where

615: Homework Sol. #7

k

i
k

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

iM1 = 4i2

ij k`
ij k`
2
=
4i

(p1 + p2 )2 22
22 s

iM2 = 4i2

ik j`
ik j`
2
=
4i

(p3 p1 )2 22
22 t

j
l

iM3 = i2
i

i` jk
i` jk
2
=
4i

(p4 p1 )2 22
22 u

iM4 = 2i( ij k` + ik j` + i` jk )

where s, t and u are the Mandelstam variables s = (p1 + p2 )2 , t = (p3 p1 )2 ,

P
u = (p4 p1 )2 , which satisfy s+t+u = i m2i as a consequence of momentum
conservation. Thus in the total scattering amplitude, the term proportional
to ij k` is
ij k`

2i

22
1 2
2 s

= +2i ij k`

s
.
s

22

Similiarly for the t and u terms, so all together

!

s ij k`
t ik j`
u i` jk
iM = 2i
.
+
+
22 s 22 t 22 u
If s, t and u are all << 2 , this can be expanded in powers of s, t and u,
!

s
t
u
iM = i 2 s ij k` (1 + 2 ) + t ik j` (1 + 2 ) + u i` jk (1 + 2 ) .

2
2
2

615: Homework Sol. #7

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

At threshold, s = t = u = 0, this vanishes. Furthermore, if i = j = k = `,

all delta functions are 1, and we have
!

s2
t2
u2
iM = i 2 s + t + u + 2 + 2 + 2

2
2
2

= i 4 (s2 + t2 + u2 ),
2
which vanishes up to order p~4 . Notice if N = 2, then i = j = k = ` = 1, as
they all range only from 1 to N 1.
(d) If a term V = aN (with N an index, not a power) is added to the
Hamiltonian, it breaks the O(N) symmetry of the Hamiltonian, but that has
already been broken by the spontaneous symmetry breaking. However it also
shifts the point in {j } space which is
the minimum of the potential, from
the point (0, . . . , 0, v0), with v0 = / , to a new point (0, . . . , 0, v), with
v = v0 + b. As V is now

1
 2 2
2
2
4
V (N , j ) = 2 ( 2 + N ) +
( ) + 2 2 N + N aN ,
2
4
the new minimum is at the point where


V
1 N2
V
2 N
N3
j
2
2
= 0 = a + ,
= 0 = + +
,
N
j
2
so 0 = a 2 v + v 3 .

If we treat a as a small parameter, a  3 / , b will also be small and

we can expand v = /+b to first order in b, which gives 0 = a2 b+32 b,
or b = a/22 .
Again, we set = N v. The expression (2) is still correct except for
missing the a(v + ) term, but in substatuting itsvalue for v, we pick up
additional terms. Using v = a/22 , v 2 = a/ , v 3 = 3a/2, and
v 4 = 2a/3/2 , we find

!
a
3a 2
a
3a

V = a + + + +
2
2

2 2
2

a 3 a 2
a
+ 2 +
+ 2 2
2
2
2

3a 2 a 2
a
a
a
+
+ 2 3 + 2 2 .
= +
2
2
2
2

615: Homework Sol. #7

Last Latexed: October 30, 2006 at 14:17

We see that the added term in V has produced small shifts in the mass,
the coupling constant, the 3 coupling constant, and shifted the vacuum
energy density further downward.

3a
a
3a
2
2
m 2 +
g 6 + 2 .
,
g 2 + 2 ,

But by far the most important effect is that the particles now have mass

a
m2 =
.

The scattering amplitude at threshold, s = 4m2 = 4a /, t = u = 0 now

has contributions
2
M1 = g

ij k`
,
m2 4m2

2
M2 = g

ik j`
,
m2

2
M3 = g

i` jk
,
m2

M4 = 2( ij k` + ik j` + i` jk ).
so together we have at threshold
!

42 + 4a3/2 1

M =
2 ij k`
22 + 3a / 4a /
!


42 + 4a3/2 1

2 ik j` + i` jk
+
22 + 3a /
!3/2



a
3 ij k` ik j` i` jk ,

which is now non-vanishing and proportional to a.

4.4 v1

4.4 v2