On the Observer Dependence of the Quantum Effective Potential

Abstract

In this short paper, we investigate the consequences of observer dependence of the quantum effective potential for an interacting field theory. Specializing to $d+2$ dimensional Euclidean Rindler space, we develop the formalism to calculate the effective potential. While the free energy diverges due to the presence of the Rindler horizon, the effective potential, which is a local function of space, is finite after the necessary renormalization procedure. We apply the results of our formalism to understand the restoration of spontaneously broken $\mathbb{Z}_2$ symmetry in three and four dimensions.