Nontopological finite temperature induced fermion number

Area of Science:

• Theoretical physics
• Quantum field theory
• Condensed matter physics

Background:

• Investigating fermion number anomalies in chiral backgrounds.
• Understanding temperature effects on quantum systems.
• Exploring topological properties in field theory.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the temperature dependence of induced fermion number in chiral backgrounds.
• To differentiate between zero and finite temperature behaviors.
• To investigate topological aspects of non-sigma model backgrounds.

Main Methods:

• Resummation of leading low-temperature terms.
• Derivative expansion to all orders.
• Analysis of chiral sigma model and kink backgrounds.

Main Results:

• Finite temperature induced fermion number depends on the detailed shape of the chiral background, unlike at zero temperature.
• A simple, physically interpretable result for the low-temperature expansion.
• Finite T induced fermion number for kink backgrounds is temperature-dependent and topological.

Conclusions:

• The chiral background's influence on virtual pairs and thermal plasma differs at finite temperature.
• Topological properties play a crucial role in finite temperature fermion number induction.
• The study provides new insights into thermal field theory and topological phenomena.