Simulating lattice QCD at finite temperature and zero quark mass

Abstract

We simulate lattice QCD with an irrelevant chiral 4-fermion interaction which allows us to simulate at zero quark mass. This enables us to study the finite-temperature chiral-symmetry-restoring phase transition for 2 massless quark flavours, which is believed to be second order. In particular, it enables us to estimate the critical exponents which characterize the universality class of this transition. Our earlier simulations on $N_t=4$ and $N_t=6$ lattices revealed that finite lattice-spacing artifacts on such coarse lattices affect the nature of the transition. We are now simulating on $N_t=8$ lattices ($12^3 \times 8$, $16^3 \times 8$ and $24^3 \times 8$ lattices) where we expect to expose the continuum behaviour of this transition.