QCD Dirac operator at nonzero chemical potential: lattice data and matrix model

Akemann G, Wettig T. QCD Dirac operator at nonzero chemical potential: lattice data and matrix model. Phys.Rev.Lett. 2004;92(10): 102002.Recently, a non-Hermitian chiral random matrix model was proposed to describethe eigenvalues of the QCD Dirac operator at nonzero chemical potential. Thismatrix model can be constructed from QCD by mapping it to an equivalent matrixmodel which has the same symmetries as QCD with chemical potential. Itsmicroscopic spectral correlations are conjectured to be identical to those ofthe QCD Dirac operator. We investigate this conjecture by comparing largeensembles of Dirac eigenvalues in quenched SU(3) lattice QCD at nonzerochemical potential to the analytical predictions of the matrix model. Excellentagreement is found in the two regimes of weak and strong non-Hermiticity, forseveral different lattice volumes