Schematic model for QCD at finite temperature

Abstract

The simplest version of a class of toy models for QCD is presented. It is a Lipkin-type model, for the quark-antiquark sector, and, for the gluon sector, gluon pairs with spin zero are treated as elementary bosons. The model restricts to mesons with spin zero and to few baryonic states. The corresponding energy spectrum is discussed. We show that ground state correlations are essential to describe physical properties of the spectrum at low energies. Quantum phase transitions are described in an effective manner, by using coherent states. The appearance of a Goldstone boson for large values of the interaction strength is discussed, as related to a collective state. The formalism is extended to consider finite temperatures. The partition function is calculated, in an approximate way, showing the convenience of the use of coherent states. The energy density, heat capacity, and transitions from the hadronic phase to the quark-gluon plasma are calculated.