Supersymmetric large-order perturbation with the Nicolai map

Abstract

In rigidly supersymmetric quantum theories, the Nicolai map allows one to turn on a coupling constant (from zero to a finite value) by keeping the (free) functional integration measure but subjecting the fields to a particular nonlocal and nonlinear transformation. A recursive perturbative construction of the Nicolai-transformed field configuration expresses it as a power series in the coupling, with its coefficient function at order n being a sum of particular tree diagrams. For a quantum-mechanical example, the size of these tree diagrams (under a certain functional norm) is estimated by the (n+1)st power of the field size, and their number grows like n−3/2×4.967n. Such an asymptotic behaviour translates to a finite convergence radius for the formal perturbative expansion of the Nicolai map, which establishes its non-perturbative existence. The known factorial growth of the number of Feynman diagrams for quantum correlators is reproduced by the combinatorics of free-field Wick contractions as usual. We expect our results to extend to higher dimensions, including super Yang–Mills theory.