Random Matrix Theory at Nonzero $μ$ and $T$

Abstract

We review applications of random matrix theory to QCD at nonzero temperature and chemical potential. The chiral phase transition of QCD and QCD-like theories is discussed in terms of eigenvalues of the Dirac operator. We show that for QCD at $μ\ne 0$, which has a sign problem, the discontinuity in the chiral condensate is due to an alternative to the Banks-Casher relation. The severity of the sign problem is analyzed in the microscopic domain of QCD.

Invited talk at YKIS2006, YITP-Kyoto, 10 pages, 10 figures