Abstract: The gauge-invariant generation of an effective gluon mass proceeds through the well-known Schwinger mechanism, whose key dynamical ingredient is the nonperturbative formation of longitudinally coupled massless bound-state excitations. These excitations introduce poles in the vertices of the theory, in such a way as to maintain the Slavnov-Taylor identities intact in the presence of massive gluon propagators. In the present work we first focus on the modifications induced to the nonperturbative three-gluon vertex by the inclusion of massless two-gluon bound states into the kernels appearing in its skeleton expansion. Certain general relations between the basic building blocks of these bound states and the gluon mass are then obtained from the Slavnov-Taylor identities and the Schwinger-Dyson equation governing the gluon propagator. The homogeneous Bethe-Salpeter equation determining the wave function of the aforementioned bound state is then derived, under certain simplifying assumptions. It is then shown, through a detailed analytical and numerical study, that this equation admits nontrivial solutions, indicating that the QCD dynamics support indeed the formation of such massless bound states. These solutions are subsequently used, in conjunction with the aforementioned relations, to determine the momentumdependence of the dynamical gluon mass. Finally, further possibilities and open questions are briefly discussed.

Abstract: In this article we use the Schwinger-Dyson equations to compute the nonperturbative modifications caused to the infrared finite gluon propagator (in the Landau gauge) by the inclusion of a small number of quark families. Our basic operating assumption is that the main bulk of the effect stems from the "one-loop dressed'' quark loop contributing to the full gluon self-energy. This quark loop is then calculated, using as basic ingredients the full quark propagator and quark-gluon vertex; for the quark propagator we use the solution obtained from the quark-gap equation, while for the vertex we employ suitable Ansatze, which guarantee the transversality of the answer. The resulting effect is included as a correction to the quenched gluon propagator, obtained in recent lattice simulations. Our main finding is that the unquenched propagator displays a considerable suppression in the intermediate momentum region, which becomes more pronounced as we increase the number of active quark families. The influence of the quarks on the saturation point of the propagator cannot be reliably computed within the present scheme; the general tendency appears to be to decrease it, suggesting a corresponding increase in the effective gluon mass. The renormalization properties of our results, and the uncertainties induced by the unspecified transverse part of the quark-gluon vertex, are discussed. Finally, the gluon propagator is compared with the available unquenched lattice data, showing rather good agreement.

Abstract: We study in detail the impact of dynamical quarks on the gluon mass generation mechanism, in the Landau gauge, for the case of a small number of quark families. As in earlier considerations, we assume that the main bulk of the unquenching corrections to the gluon propagator originates from the fully dressed quark-loop diagram. The nonperturbative evaluation of this diagram provides the key relation that expresses the unquenched gluon propagator as a deviation from its quenched counterpart. This relation is subsequently coupled to the integral equation that controls the momentum evolution of the effective gluon mass, which contains a single adjustable parameter; this constitutes a major improvement compared to the analysis presented in Aguilar et al. [Phys. Rev. D 86, 014032 (2012)], where the behavior of the gluon propagator in the deep infrared was estimated through numerical extrapolation. The resulting nonlinear system is then treated numerically, yielding unique solutions for the modified gluon mass and the quenched gluon propagator, which fully confirms the picture put forth recently in several continuum and lattice studies. In particular, an infrared finite gluon propagator emerges, whose saturation point is considerably suppressed, due to a corresponding increase in the value of the gluon mass. This characteristic feature becomes more pronounced as the number of active quark families increases, and can be deduced from the infrared structure of the kernel entering in the gluon mass equation.