Gravitational Contributions to the Running of Gauge Couplings

Abstract

Gravitational contributions to the running of gauge couplings are calculated by using different regularization schemes. As the $\beta$ function concerns counter-terms of dimension four, only quadratic divergences from the gravitational contributions need to be investigated. A consistent result is obtained by using a symmetry-preserving loop regularization with string-mode regulators which can appropriately treat the quadratic divergences and preserve non-abelian gauge symmetry. The harmonic gauge condition for gravity is used in both diagrammatical and background field calculations, the resulting gravitational corrections to the $\beta$ function are found to be nonzero, which is different from previous results presented in the existing literatures.