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How can the connected Greens 2pt function be summed as a geometric series of the self-energy if the self-energy contains divergent terms?

Physics Asked on May 1, 2021

In Ryder’s book on QFT page 341 we can see
$$begin{align}
D_{munu}’=D_{munu}-D_{mualpha}big(k^alpha k^beta-g^{alphabeta}k^2big)Pi(k^2)D_{betanu}
end{align}$$

and hence putting $D_{munu}=-g_{munu}/k^2,$
$$begin{align}
D’_{munu}(k)&=frac{1}{k^2[1+Pi(k^2)]}Bigg(-g_{munu}-frac{k_mu k_nu}{k^2}Pi(k^2)Bigg)&=frac{-g_{munu}}{k^2[1+Pi(k^2)]} + text{gauge terms}.
end{align}tag{9.122}$$

I don’t understand how he derived this equation,
I tried to derive the last expression as follows
putting $D_{munu}=-frac{g_{munu}}{k^2}$(Feynman’s propagator) gives
$$begin{align}
D’_{munu}(k)=frac{-g_{munu}}{k^2}-Bigg(frac{k_mu k^nu}{k^2}-g_{munu}Bigg)frac{Pi(k^2)}{k^2}
=frac{1}{k^2}big(1-Pi(k^2)big)Bigg[-g_{munu}-frac{k_mu k^nuPi(k^2)}{k^2(1-Pi(k^2))}Bigg].end{align}$$

Iff $Pi(k^2)ll 1$ we can use the expansion
$$(1-x)^{-1}=1+x+x^2+x^3+x^4ldots$$
On using this expansion we get

$$begin{align}
D’_{munu}(k)&=frac{1}{k^2[1+Pi(k^2)]}Bigg(-g_{munu}-frac{k_mu k_nu}{k^2}Pi(k^2)Bigg)&=frac{-g_{munu}}{k^2[1+Pi(k^2)]} + text{gauge terms}.
end{align}tag{9.124}$$

But in fact, $Pi(k^2)gg 1$ due to the presence of the divergent term $frac{1}{6pi^2epsilon}$ in $Pi(k^2)$. How can we say Ryder is correct?

One Answer

OP asks a very good conceptional question that goes to the heart of renormalization. Consider Ryder's formula for the self-energy

$$ Pi~=~frac{e^2}{6pi^2}left(frac{1}{epsilon}+frac{k^2}{10m^2} right)+{cal O}(e^4)~=~frac{e^2}{6pi^2epsilon} + Pi_{rm finite}+{cal O}(e^4).tag{9.123} $$

The answer to OP's question is that in the renormalization procedure we treat the self-energy$^1$ $$Pi~=~ sum_{n=1}^{infty} (e^2)^nPi_n tag{A}$$ as a formal power series [without a constant term] in the coupling constant $e^2$. Each coefficient $$Pi_n=sum_{m=-N}^{infty}epsilon^m Pi_{nm}tag{B}$$ is a truncated Laurent series in $epsilon$. The coefficients $Pi_n$ are not necessarily small, as OP already has observed. For this and other reasons, the power series (A) is not convergent. However, it still makes sense to treat it as a formal power series. Formal power series form an algebra with a well-defined addition and multiplication. In this way we are able to make consistent perturbative calculations even if the coefficients $Pi_n$ are not small.

--

$^1$ More precisely, the underlying $Z$-factors.

Correct answer by Qmechanic on May 1, 2021

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