Lattice Gauge Theories

Abstract

In the last few years lattice gauge theory has become the primary tool for the study of nonperturbative phenomena in gauge theories. The lattice serves as an ultraviolet cutoff, rendering the theory well defined and amenable to numerical and analytical work. Of course, as with any cutoff, at the end of a calculation one must consider the limit of vanishing lattice spacing in order to draw conclusions on the physical continuum limit theory. The lattice has the advantage over other regulators that it is not tied to the Feynman expansion. This opens the possibility of other approximation schemes than conventional perturbation theory. Thus Wilson used a high temperature expansion to demonstrate confinement in the strong coupling limit. Monte Carlo simulations have dominated the research in lattice gauge theory for the last four years, giving first principle calculations of nonperturbative parameters characterizing the continuum limit.