English

Lattice field theories with a sign problem

High Energy Physics - Lattice 2026-05-07 v2

Abstract

The sign problem obstructs the determination of the QCD phase diagram in the temperature-baryon chemical potential plane using lattice QCD. We review the sign problem in QCD and related field theories, including applications to real-time dynamics. We focus on approaches where the sign problem can potentially be solved or controlled, irrespective of its severeness. These include holomorphic extensions -- Lefschetz thimbles, holomorphic flow, contour deformations, and complex Langevin dynamics --, and the introduction of new degrees of freedom -- dual variables and the tensor renormalisation group. We also highlight directions in which machine learning approaches have shown promise. Since many methods are first tested in simpler models, we provide an outlook on their feasibility for lattice systems.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2604.24290,
  title  = {Lattice field theories with a sign problem},
  author = {Gert Aarts and Dénes Sexty},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2604.24290},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

21 pages, Chapter for Encyclopedia of Nuclear Physics, Editor-in-Chief: Sanjay Reddy, Section Editor: Kenji Fukushima. v2: references added

R2 v1 2026-07-01T12:36:49.890Z