Uniform WKB, Multi-instantons, and Resurgent Trans-Series

Abstract

We illustrate the physical significance and mathematical origin of resurgent trans-series expansions for energy eigenvalues in quantum mechanical problems with degenerate harmonic minima, by using the uniform WKB approach. We provide evidence that the perturbative expansion, combined with a global eigenvalue condition, contains all information needed to generate all orders of the non-perturbative multi-instanton expansion. This provides a dramatic realization of the concept of resurgence, whose structure is naturally encoded in the resurgence triangle. We explain the relation between the uniform WKB approach, multi-instantons, and resurgence theory. The essential idea applies to any perturbative expansion, and so is also relevant for quantum field theories with degenerate minima which can be continuously connected to quantum mechanical systems.