English

Kurt Symanzik - a stable fixed point beyond triviality

High Energy Physics - Theory 2009-11-11 v2

Abstract

In 1970 Kurt Symanzik proposed a "precarious" phi**4-theory with a negative quartic coupling constant as a valid candidate for an asymptotically free theory of strong interactions. Symanzik's deep insight in the non-trivial properties of this theory has been overruled since then by the Hermitian intuition of generations of scientists, who considered or consider this actually non-Hermitian highly important theory to be unstable. This short - certainly controversial - communication tries to shed some light on the historical and formalistic context of Symanzik's theory in order to sharpen our (quantum) intuition about non-perturbative theoretical physics between (non)triviality and asymptotic freedom.

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-th/0506142,
  title  = {Kurt Symanzik - a stable fixed point beyond triviality},
  author = {F. Kleefeld},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-th/0506142},
  year   = {2009}
}

Comments

6 pages, no figures, new style files, revised for typos, improved discussion, new references added

R2 v1 2026-07-22T15:30:36.114Z