Swimming and swirling colorful ghosts

Abstract

We show that the ideal fluid limit, defined as the existance of a flow frame $u_\mu$ with respect to which the fluid is homogeneus and isotropic, and the consequent independence of the equation of state on $u_\mu$, is incompatible with non-Abelian gauge theory. Instead, the equation of state becomes dependent on $u_\mu$ via modes which are roughly equivalent to ghost modes in the hydrodynamic limit. These modes can be physically imagined as a field of 'purcell swimmers' whose 'arms and legs' are outstretched in Gauge space. Also, vorticity should couple to the Wilson loop via the chromo-electro-magnetic field tensor, which in this limit is not a 'force' but instead represents the polarization tensor of the gluons. We show that because of this coupling vorticity also aquires swirling non-hydrodynamic modes. We then argue that these swirling and swimming non-hydodynamic modes are the manifestation of gauge redunancy within local equilibrium, and speculate on their role in quark-gluon plasma thermalization