Marginal Extended Perturbations in Two Dimensions and Gap-Exponent Relations

The most general form of a marginal extended perturbation in a two-dimensional system is deduced from scaling considerations. It includes as particular cases extended perturbations decaying either from a surface, a line or a point for which exact results have been previously obtained. The first-order corrections to the local exponents, which are functions of the amplitude of the defect, are deduced from a perturbation expansion of the two-point correlation functions. Assuming covariance under conformal transformation, the perturbed system is mapped onto a cylinder. Working in the Hamiltonian limit, the first-order corrections to the lowest gaps are calculated for the Ising model. The results confirm the validity of the gap-exponent relations for the perturbed system.