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arXiv:2603.01215 · Physical review. D/Physical review. D.

Continuum limit of a qubit-regularized SU(3) lattice gauge theory on a plaquette chain

Rui Xian Siew, Shailesh Chandrasekharan, Tanmoy Bhattacharya

hep-latcond-mat.str-elhep-thnucl-thquant-phSubmitted Mar 1, 2026• Announced Mar 3, 2026• 0 citations• Revised Oct 8, 2026 (v2)
v1 · Mar 1, 2026v2 · Oct 8, 2026
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Abstract

We show that a simple qubit-regularized $\mathrm{SU}(3)$ lattice gauge theory on a plaquette chain admits a continuum limit with massive gauge-invariant excitations, providing a minimal toy model of strong interactions without quarks. By mapping the plaquette-chain Hamiltonian to the three-state quantum clock model in a magnetic field, we demonstrate that the theory can be tuned to a continuum limit governed at short distances by the $\mathbb{Z}_3$ parafermion conformal field theory, which serves as the ultraviolet fixed point. A small relevant magnetic perturbation then drives the system to a massive continuum quantum field theory in the infrared, featuring relativistic particles. In this continuum theory we compute two universal ratios: the mass ratio of the lightest massive particles with opposite charge conjugation, $m^{-}/m^{+} = 1.459(2)$, and $\sqrtσ/m^{+} = 0.2648(2)$, where $σ$ denotes the string tension between a static quark and antiquark.

Journal reference
Phys. Rev. D 114, L071504 (2026)
DOI
10.1103/xtsm-rw6d
Comments
Accepted for publication in Physical Review D. 7 pages of main text with 5 figures; 25 pages of Supplementary Material

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We show that a simple qubit-regularized SU(3)\mathrm{SU}(3)SU(3) lattice gauge theory on a plaquette chain admits a continuum limit with massive gauge-invariant excitations, providing a minimal toy model of strong interactions without quarks. By mapping the plaquette-chain Hamiltonian to the three-state quantum clock model in a magnetic field, we demonstrate that the theory can be tuned to a continuum limit governed at short distances by the Z3\mathbb{Z}_3Z3​ parafermion conformal field theory, which serves as the ultraviolet fixed point. A small relevant magnetic perturbation then drives the system to a massive continuum quantum field theory in the infrared, featuring relativistic particles. In this continuum theory we compute two universal ratios: the mass ratio of the lightest massive particles with opposite charge conjugation, m−/m+=1.459(2)m^{-}/m^{+} = 1.459(2)m−/m+=1.459(2), and σ/m+=0.2648(2)\sqrtσ/m^{+} = 0.2648(2)σ​/m+=0.2648(2), where σσσ denotes the string tension between a static quark and antiquark.
We argue that a simple qubit-regularized SU(2)\mathrm{SU}(2)SU(2) lattice gauge theory (LGT) on a plaquette chain serves as a pseudo-one-dimensional toy model for Yang-Mills (YM) theory in three spatial dimensions. We map the chain Hamiltonian to the Transverse Field Ising Model (TFIM) in a uniform magnetic field and demonstrate that it can be tuned to a continuum limit in which the short-distance physics is governed by the asymptotically free Ising conformal field theory (CFT) describing free Majorana fermions, while the long-distance regime contains massive excitations of the E8E_8E8​ quantum field theory (QFT) that can be interpreted as one-dimensional analogues of glueballs. Furthermore, we find σ/m1=0.249(1)\sqrtσ/m_1 = 0.249(1)σ​/m1​=0.249(1) where σσσ is the string tension between two static quarks and m1m_1m1​ is the mass of the lightest glueball.
We study SU(3) gauge theory on small lattices in the minimal (qutrit) electric field truncation retaining only the 1,3,3‾{\bf 1}, {\bf 3}, {\bf \overline{3}}1,3,3 representations for the link variables. Explicit expressions are given for the Kogut-Susskind Hamiltonian for the square plaquette chain and the two-dimensional honeycomb lattice. Our formalism can be easily extended to the minimally truncated general SU(NcN_cNc​) gauge theory. The addition of (static) quarks is discussed. We present results for the energy spectrum of the gauge field on these lattices by exact diagonalization of the Hamiltonian and analyze its statistical properties. We also compute the SU(3) string tension and discuss how it is modified by vacuum fluctuations. Finally, we calculate the potential energies of a static quark-antiquark pair and three static quarks and study their screening at finite temperature.
Quantum simulations of the dynamics of QCD have been limited by the complexities of mapping the continuous gauge fields onto quantum computers. By parametrizing the gauge invariant Hilbert space in terms of plaquette degrees of freedom, we show how the Hilbert space and interactions can be expanded in inverse powers of N_{c}. At leading order in this expansion, the Hamiltonian simplifies dramatically, both in the required size of the Hilbert space as well as the type of interactions involved. Adding a truncation of the resulting Hilbert space in terms of local energy states we give explicit constructions that allow simple representations of SU(3) gauge fields on qubits and qutrits. This formulation allows a simulation of the real time dynamics of a SU(3) lattice gauge theory on a 5×5 and 8×8 lattice on ibm_torino with a CNOT depth of 113.
Other than the commonly used Wilson's regularization of quantum field theories (QFTs), there is a growing interest in regularizations that explore lattice models with a strictly finite local Hilbert space, in anticipation of the upcoming era of quantum simulations of QFTs. A notable example is Euclidean qubit regularization, which provides a natural way to recover continuum QFTs that emerge via infrared fixed points of lattice theories. Can such regularizations also capture the physics of ultraviolet fixed points? We present a novel regularization of the asymptotically free massive continuum QFT that emerges at the Berezenski-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition through a hard core loop-gas model, discussing the advantages this model provides compared to traditional regularizations. In particular, we demonstrate that without the need for fine-tuning, it can reproduce the universal step-scaling function of the classical lattice XY model in the massive phase as we approach the phase transition.
Traditional SU ( N ) lattice gauge theories (LGTs) can be formulated using an orthonormal basis constructed from the irreducible representations (irreps) V λ of the SU ( N ) gauge symmetry. On a lattice, the elements of this basis are tensor networks comprising dimer tensors on the links labeled by a set of irreps { λ ℓ } and monomer tensors on sites labeled by { λ s } . These tensors naturally define a local site Hilbert space, H s g , on which gauge transformations act. Gauss’s law introduces an additional index α s = 1 , 2 , … , D ( H s g ) that labels an orthonormal basis of the gauge-invariant subspace of H s g . This monomer-dimer tensor-network (MDTN) basis, | { λ s } , { λ ℓ } , { α s } ⟩ , of the physical Hilbert space enables the construction of new qubit-regularized SU ( N ) gauge theories that are free of sign problems while preserving key features of traditional LGTs. Here, we investigate finite-temperature confinement-deconfinement transitions in a simple qubit-regularized SU(2) and SU(3) gauge theory in d = 2 and d = 3 spatial dimensions, formulated using the MDTN basis, and show that they reproduce the universal results of traditional LGTs at these transitions. Additionally, in d = 1 , we demonstrate using a plaquette chain that the string tension at zero temperature can be continuously tuned to zero by adjusting a model parameter that plays the role of the gauge coupling in traditional LGTs.
Lattice gauge theories (LGTs) describe fundamental interactions in particle physics. A central phenomenon in these theories is confinement, which binds quarks and antiquarks into hadrons through the formation of string-like flux tubes of gauge fields. Simulating confinement dynamics is a challenging task, but recent advances in quantum simulation are enabling the exploration of LGTs in regimes beyond the reach of classical computation. For analog devices, a major difficulty is the realization of strong plaquette interactions, which generate string fluctuations that can drive a roughening transition. Understanding string roughening -- where strong transversal functions lead to an effective restoration of translational symmetry at long distances -- is of central importance in the study of confinement. In this work, we show that string roughening emerges naturally in an analog Rydberg quantum simulator. We first map a triangular Rydberg array onto a (2+1)D U(1) LGT where plaquette terms appear as first-order processes. We study flux strings connecting static charges and demonstrate that, near a deconfined quantum critical point, the string exhibits logarithmic growth of its transverse width as the separation between charges increases, along with the universal Lüscher correction to the confining potential -- both signatures of string roughening. Finally, we investigate the real-time dynamics of an initially rigid string, observing large fluctuations after quenching into the roughening regime, as well as string breaking via particle-pair creation. Our results indicate that rough strings can be realized in experimentally accessible quantum simulators, opening the door to detailed studies of how strong fluctuations influence string-breaking dynamics.