SU(3) Lattice Gauge Theory With Adjoint Action At Nonzero Temperature

Abstract

We study the thermal phase diagram of pure SU(3) gauge theory with fundamental and adjoint couplings. We improve previous estimates of the position of the bulk transition line and determine the thermal deconfinement transition lines for $N_t=2,4,6,$ and 8. For $N_t > 4$ the deconfinement transition line splits cleanly away from the bulk transition line. With increasing $N_t$ the thermal deconfinement transition lines shift to increasingly weaker coupling, joining onto the bulk transition line at increasingly larger $β_a$ in a pattern consistent with the usual universality picture of lattice gauge theories.