Phase transition in a supersymmetric theory

Abstract

We study the thermodynamics of a globally supersymmetric theory in the presence of a net background of "charge" associated with a continuous symmetry. We solve exactly a prototypical model involving two chiral superfields in the weak-coupling limit and demonstrate the existence of a second-order phase transition associated with the spontaneous breaking of this symmetry. This is done by showing that one of the scalar fields in the supermultiplet develops a vacuum expectation value below a critical temperature. We also find that this phase transition is in the same universality class as the usual Bose gas condensation.