String Theory seminar - Miguel Tierz Seminar

We present a study of N=4 supersymmetric QED in three dimensions, on a three-sphere, with 2N massive hypermultiplets and a Fayet-Iliopoulos parameter. We identify the exact partition function of the theory with a conical (Mehler) function. This implies a number of analytical formulas, including a recurrence relation and a second-order differential equation. In the large N limit, the theory undergoes a second-order phase transition on a critical line in the parameter space. We will discuss the critical behavior and compute the two-point correlation function of a gauge invariant mass operator.