Anomaly cancellation triangle

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    Anomaly Triangle
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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the anomaly cancellation in triangle diagrams involving Z bosons and W bosons, specifically the relationship expressed as Z → W^-W^+. Participants highlight that contributions from different fermions, such as top quarks, do not uniformly contribute to the anomaly due to variations in mass and coupling constants. The divergence in these diagrams necessitates careful consideration of gauge invariance and the inclusion of color-degeneracy factors to ensure that the overall anomaly cancels, as dictated by the charge pattern of the Standard Model particles.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of Standard Model particle physics
  • Familiarity with triangle diagrams in quantum field theory
  • Knowledge of gauge invariance and anomalies
  • Basic concepts of CKM (Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa) matrix elements
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  • Study the implications of gauge invariance in quantum field theories
  • Explore the role of color-degeneracy factors in particle interactions
  • Research the properties of triangle diagrams in the context of anomaly cancellation
  • Review the Standard Model's charge patterns and their impact on anomaly cancellation
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Particle physicists, theoretical physicists, and students studying quantum field theory, particularly those interested in anomaly cancellation and the Standard Model interactions.

ChrisVer
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If I have a triangle diagram for Z \rightarrow W^-W^+, do all fermions contribute the same for giving the contraint \sum_i Q_i =0??
I think that eg top quarks will be absent for such a diagram...

any help?
 
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Hepth said:
The contributions will not be the same either. Not only do the masses differ, but the couplings to Z as well as the W CKM elements will differ from diagram to diagram.
So how can anomaly cancelation occur if so many things differ?
 
I'm not sure now to be honest. I thinks in the limit that the masses are smaller than some higher scale?

http://arxiv.org/pdf/hep-ph/0003143.pdf

Page 6 has some info on it. I'll think about it some until someone else comes along.
 
ChrisVer said:
So how can anomaly cancelation occur if so many things differ?

I think the dangerous part contributing to the anomaly in these triangle diagrams is the divergent part. This will force you to add a non gauge invariant term to the bare Lagrangian if it doesn't cancel out. Since the divergent part comes from the UV, the masses don't come in, only the couplings.
 
You must have both quarks per family, and you must not forget the color-degeneracy factor. You'll then see that the anomaly of the local gauge symmetry indeed cancels due to the charge pattern of the matter particles in the Standard Model. Without this, it would be obsolete ("not even wrong")!
 
No my problem is that:
likeaboss.jpg

Are those two diagrams contributing the same so that they can cancel each other out?
Because I think that \sum_i Q_i is assuming that they do...
 

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