The deconfining phase transition in SU(N) gauge theories

We report on our ongoing investigation of the deconfining phase transition in SU(4) and SU(6) gauge theories. We calculate the critical couplings while taking care to avoid the influence of a nearby bulk phase transition. We determine the latent heat of the phase transition and investigate the order and the strength of the transition at large N. We also report on our determination of the critical temperature expressed in units of the string tension in the large N limit.