Multi-Trace Operators, Boundary Conditions, And AdS/CFT Correspondence

Abstract

We argue that multi-trace interactions in quantum field theory on the boundary of AdS space can be incorporated in the AdS/CFT correspondence by using a more general boundary condition for the bulk fields than has been considered hitherto. We illustrate the procedure for a renormalizable four-dimensional field theory with a $(\Tr \Phi^2)^2$ interaction. In this example, we show how the AdS fields with the appropriate boundary condition reproduce the renormalization group effects found in the boundary field theory. We also construct in related examples a line of fixed points with a nonperturbative duality, and a flow between two methods of quantization.