Coupling ghost modes to dissipative baths generates dynamically effective masses and widths that suppress Ostrogradsky instabilities above a critical coupling via bifurcated dissipative branches and a phase transition.
Confinement of Massive Ghost in Quadratic Gravity
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abstract
In the framework of the covariant canonical formalism of quadratic gravity, we consider the problem of confinement of massive ghost which violates the unitarity of the physical S-matrix. It is shown that if there is a bound state between the massive ghost and Faddeev-Popov ghost the massive ghost is confined in the zero-norm states through the BRST quartet mechanism, thereby the unitarity being restored. Based on the superfield formulation by Bonora and Tonin, we show that the asymptotic field of the massive ghost must be a massive dipole whereas that of the bound state obeys a massive Klein-Gordon equation. This situation may be of some similarity to color confinement in quantum chromodynamics (QCD) where it is conjectured that not a massless but a massive gluon is in fact confined.
fields
hep-th 2years
2026 2verdicts
UNVERDICTED 2representative citing papers
Using superfield formalism, the paper links color confinement in QCD to massive gluons and quarks obeying dipole field equations and conjectures an analogous resolution to the unitarity problem in quadratic gravity via ghost confinement.
citing papers explorer
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Dissipative stabilization of Ostrogradsky modes in non-equilibrium field theory
Coupling ghost modes to dissipative baths generates dynamically effective masses and widths that suppress Ostrogradsky instabilities above a critical coupling via bifurcated dissipative branches and a phase transition.
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Color Confinement and Massive Gluon in Superfield Formalism
Using superfield formalism, the paper links color confinement in QCD to massive gluons and quarks obeying dipole field equations and conjectures an analogous resolution to the unitarity problem in quadratic gravity via ghost confinement.