Elusive anomalies

Abstract

Usually, in order to compute an anomaly (be it chiral or trace) with a perturbative method, the lowest significant order is sufficient. With the help of gauge or diffeomorphism invariance it uniquely identifies the anomaly. This note is a short review of the ambiguities that arise in the calculation of trace anomalies, and is meant, in particular, to signal cases in which the lowest perturbative order is not enough to unambiguously identify a trace anomaly. This may shed light on some recent contradictory results.