The superconducting order parameter and gauge dependence

Abstract

The gauge dependence of the renormalization group functions of the Ginzburg-Landau model is investigated. The analysis is done by means of the Ward-Takahashi identities. After defining the superconducting order parameter, it is shown that its exponent $\beta$ is in fact gauge independent. This happens because in d=3 the Landau gauge is the only gauge having a physical meaning, a property not shared by the four-dimensional model where any gauge choice is possible. The analysis is done in both the context of the $\epsilon$-expansion and in the fixed dimension approach. It is pointed out the differences that arise in both of these approaches concerning the gauge dependence.