Critical Endpoint of QCD and Baryon Number Fluctuations in a Finite Volume

Abstract

We summarize recent results on the volume dependence of the location of the critical endpoint in the QCD phase diagram. To this end, we employ a sophisticated combination of Lattice Yang--Mills theory and a (truncated) version of Dyson--Schwinger equations in Landau gauge for $2+1$ quark flavours. We study this system at small and intermediate volumes and determine the dependence of the location of the critical endpoint on the boundary conditions and the volume of a three-dimensional cube with edge length $L$. We also discuss recent results on baryon number fluctuations in this setup.

Comments: 5 pages, 2 figures; contribution to the proceedings of the FAIR next generation scientists workshop (FAIRNESS), 7th edition, 23-27 May 2022, Paralia (Pieria, Greece)