The canonical approach at high temperature revisited

Abstract

This paper discusses a paradox encountered when employing the canonical approach, particularly in the high-temperature region where the Roberge-Weiss transition exists at finite imaginary chemical potential. The paradox is that the results obtained using the canonical approach cannot match the correct results in that region. We show that the paradox originates from the Roberge-Weiss transition in the infinite-size system, which is linked to the non-trivial Polyakov-loop sectors. Furthermore, it is shown that this paradox disappears in finite-size systems because of the smearing effect for the Roberge-Weiss transition, which validates the use of the canonical approach in lattice QCD simulations.