Probing Deconfinement with Polyakov Loop Susceptibilities

The susceptibilities of the real and imaginary parts, as well as of the modulus of the Polyakov loop, are computed in SU(3) lattice gauge theory. We show that the ratios of these susceptibilities are excellent probes of the deconfinement transition, independent of the renormalization of the Polyakov loop and only weakly dependent on the system size. The ratios are almost temperature independent above and below the transition and exhibit a discontinuity at the transition temperature. This characteristic behavior can be understood in terms of the global Z(3) symmetry of the Yang-Mills Lagrangian and the general properties of the Polyakov loop probability distribution.