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The Batalin-Vilkovisky function is a central component in the modern formulation of the background field method and the physical applications derived from it. In the present work we report on novel lattice results for this particular quantity, obtained by capitalizing on its equality with the Kugo-Ojima function in the Landau gauge. The results of the lattice simulation are in very good agreement with the predictions derived from a continuum analysis based on the corresponding Schwinger-Dyson equations. In addition, we show that an important relation connecting this function with the ghost propagator is fulfilled rather accurately. With the aid of these results, we carry out the first completely lattice-based determination of the process-independent strong running interaction, employed in a variety of phenomenological studies., Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures

The Dyson-Schwinger quark equation is solved for the quark-gluon vertex using the most recent lattice data available in the Landau gauge for the quark, gluon and ghost propagators, the full set of longitudinal tensor structures in the Ball-Chiu vertex, taking into account a recently derived normalisation for a quark-ghost kernel form factors and the gluon contribution for the tree level quark-gluon vertex identified on a recent study of the lattice soft gluon limit. A solution for the inverse problem is computed after the Tikhonov linear regularisation of the integral equation, that implies solving a modified Dyson-Schwinger equation. We get longitudinal form factors that are strongly enhanced at the infrared region, deviate significantly from the tree level results for quark and gluon momentum below 2 GeV and at higher momentum approach their perturbative values. The computed quark-gluon vertex favours kinematical configurations where the quark momentum $p$ and the gluon momentum $q$ are small and parallel. Further, the quark-gluon vertex is dominated by the form factors associated to the tree level vertex $\gamma_\mu$ and to the operator $2 \, p_\mu + q_\mu$. The higher rank tensor structures provide small contributions to the vertex., Comment: Some rewriting. Version accepted for publication in Eur Phys J C

An approximate dual representation for non-Abelian lattice gauge theories in terms of a new set of dynamical variables, the plaquette occupation numbers (PONs) that are natural numbers, is discussed. They are the expansion indices of the local series of the expansion of the Boltzmann factors for every plaquette of the Yang-Mills action. After studying the constraints due to gauge symmetry, the SU(2) gauge theory is solved using Monte Carlo simulations. For a PONs configuration the weight factor is given by Haar-measure integrals over all links whose integrands are products of powers of plaquettes. Herein, updates are limited to changes of the PON at a plaquette or all PONs on a coordinate plane. The Markov chain transition probabilities are computed employing truncated maximal trees and the Metropolis algorithm. The algorithm performance is investigated with different types of updates for the plaquette mean value over a large range of $\beta$s. Using a $12^4$ lattice very good agreement with a conventional heath bath algorithm is found for the strong and weak coupling limits. Deviations from the latter being below 0.1% for $2.5 < \beta < 3$. The mass of the lightest $J^{PC}=0^{++}$ glueball is evaluated and reproduces the results found in the literature.

We revisit the static potential for the $Q Q \bar Q \bar Q$ system using SU(3) lattice simulations, studying both the colour singlets groundstate and first excited state. We consider geometries where the two static quarks and the two anti-quarks are at the corners of rectangles of different sizes. We analyse the transition between a tetraquark system and a two meson system with a two by two correlator matrix. We compare the potentials computed with quenched QCD and with dynamical quarks. We also compare our simulations with the results of previous studies and analyze quantitatively fits of our results with anzatse inspired in the string flip-flop model and in its possible colour excitations., Comment: 24 pages, 17 figures, 14 tables

The gluon propagator is investigated at finite temperature via lattice simulations. In particular, we discuss its interpretation as a massive-type bosonic propagator. Moreover, we compute the corresponding spectral density and study the violation of spectral positivity. Finally, we explore the dependence of the gluon propagator on the phase of the Polyakov loop., Comment: 6 pages, talk presented by P. J. Silva at the Light Cone 2016 Conference, Lisbon, Portugal, 5-8 September 2016

The two point gluon and ghost correlation functions and the three gluon vertex are investigated, in the Landau gauge, using lattice simulations. For the two point functions, we discuss the approach to the continuum limit looking at the dependence on the lattice spacing and volume. The analytical structure of the propagators is also investigated by computing the corresponding spectral functions using an implementation of the Tikhonov regularisation to solve the integral equation. For the three point function we report results when the momentum of one of the gluon lines is set to zero and discuss its implications., Comment: Proceedings of Light Cone 2016, held in Lisbon, September 2016. Minor changes in text. To appear in Few B Sys

The correlations between the modulus of the Polyakov loop, its phase $\theta$ and the Landau gauge gluon propagator at finite temperature are investigated in connection with the center symmetry for pure Yang-Mills SU(3) theory. In the deconfined phase, where the center symmetry is spontaneously broken, the phase of the Polyakov loop per configuration is close to $\theta = 0$, $\pm \, 2 \pi /3$. We find that the gluon propagator form factors associated with $\theta \approx 0$ differs quantitatively and qualitatively from those associated to $\theta \approx \pm \, 2 \pi /3$. This difference between the form factors is a property of the deconfined phase and a sign of the spontaneous breaking of the center symmetry. Furthermore, given that this difference vanishes in the confined phase, it can be used as an order parameter associated to the deconfinement transition. For simulations near the critical temperature $T_c$, the difference between the propagators associated to $\theta \approx 0$ and $\theta \approx \pm \, 2 \pi /3$ allows to classify the configurations as belonging to the confined or deconfined phase. This establishes a selection procedure which has a measurable impact in the gluon form factors. Our results also show that the absence of the selection procedure can be erroneously taken as lattice artifacts., Comment: 17 pages, 12 figures

We study the SU(3) gluon propagator in renormalizable $R_\xi$ gauges implemented on a symmetric lattice with a total volume of (3.25 fm)$^4$ for values of the guage fixing parameter up to $\xi=0.5$. As expected, the longitudinal gluon dressing function stays constant at its tree-level value $\xi$. Similar to the Landau gauge, the transverse $R_\xi$ gauge gluon propagator saturates at a non-vanishing value in the deep infrared for all values of $\xi$ studied. We compare with very recent continuum studies and perform a simple analysis of the found saturation with a dynamically generated effective gluon mass., Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures

We address the interpretation of the Landau gauge gluon propagator at finite temperature as a massive type bosonic propagator. Using pure gauge SU(3) lattice simulations at a fixed lattice volume $\sim(6.5fm)^3$, we compute the electric and magnetic form factors, extract a gluon mass from Yukawa-like fits, and study its temperature dependence. This is relevant both for the Debye screening at high temperature $T$ and for confinement at low $T$., Comment: Version accepted for publication in PRD

We investigate the dressed quark-gluon vertex combining two established non-perturbative approaches to QCD: the Dyson-Schwinger equation (DSE) for the quark propagator and lattice-regularized simulations for the quark, gluon and ghost propagators. The vertex is modeled using a generalized Ball-Chiu ansatz parameterized by a single form factor $\tilde X_0$ which effectively represents the quark-ghost scattering kernel. The solution space of the DSE inversion for $\tilde X_0$ is highly degenerate, which can be dealt with by a numerical regularization scheme. We consider two possibilities: (i) linear regularization and (ii) the Maximum Entropy Method. These two numerical approaches yield compatible $\tilde X_0$ functions for the range of momenta where lattice data is available and feature a strong enhancement of the generalized Ball-Chiu vertex for momenta below 1 GeV. Our ansatz for the quark-gluon vertex is then used to solve the quark DSE which yields a mass function in good agreement with lattice simulations and thus provides adequate dynamical chiral symmetry breaking., Comment: 29 pages, 14 figures, JHEP style

In this proceeding, we explain a few steps for an alternative extraction of the spectral density of a two-point function (propagator) based on a discrete set of data points. We present a so-called Tikhonov regularization of this particular inverse problem. We test it on 2 cases: lattice 0++} glueball data and mock gluon data., Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Proceedings of Xth Quark Confinement and the Hadron Spectrum, October 8-12, 2012, TUM Campus Garching, Munich, Germany

In the past years a good comprehension of the infrared gluon propagator has been achieved, with a good qualitative agreement between lattice results and Dyson-Schwinger equations. However, lattice simulations have been performed at physical volumes which are close to 20 fm but using a large lattice spacing. The interplay between volume effects and lattice spacing effects has not been investigated. Here we aim to fill this gap and address how the two effects change the gluon propagator in the infrared region. Furthermore, we provide infinite volume extrapolations which take into account the finite volume and finite lattice spacing. We also report on preliminary results for the gluon propagator at finite temperature., Comment: Proceedings of the 30th International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory - Lattice 2012; June 24-29, 2012; Cairns, Australia

The propagator of a physical degree of freedom ought to obey a K\"{a}ll\'{e}n-Lehmann spectral representation, with positive spectral density. The latter quantity is directly related to a cross section based on the optical theorem. The spectral density is a crucial ingredient of a quantum field theory with elementary and bound states, with a direct experimental connection as the masses of the excitations reflect themselves into (continuum) $\delta$-singularities. In usual lattice simulational approaches to the QCD spectrum the spectral density itself is not accessed. The (bound state) masses are extracted from the asymptotic exponential decay of the two-point function. Given the importance of the spectral density, each nonperturbative continuum approach to QCD should be able to adequately describe it or to take into proper account. In this work, we wish to present a first trial in extracting an estimate for the scalar glueball spectral density in SU(3) gluodynamics using lattice gauge theory., Comment: Proceedings of the 30th International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory - Lattice 2012; June 24-29, 2012; Cairns, Australia

We investigate the phase diagram of the so-called Polyakov--Nambu--Jona-Lasinio (PNJL) model at finite temperature and nonzero chemical potential. The calculations are performed in the light and strange quark sectors ($u$, $d$, $s$), which includes the 't Hooft instanton induced interaction term that breaks the axial symmetry, and the quarks are coupled to the (spatially constant) temporal background gauge field. On one hand, a special attention is payed to the critical end point (CEP). The strength of the flavor-mixing interaction alters the CEP location, since when it becomes weaker the CEP moves to low temperatures and can even disappear. On the other hand, we also explore the connection between QCD, a nonlocal Nambu--Jona-Lasinio type model and the Landau gauge gluon propagator. Possible links between the quenched gluon propagator and low energy hadronic phenomenology are investigated., Comment: Contribution to the International Meeting "Excited QCD", Peniche, Portugal, 06 - 12 May 2012

Either by solving the ghost propagator DSE or through a one-loop computation in the RGZ (Refined Gribov-Zwanziger) formalism, we show that a non-trivial ghost-gluon vertex is anyhow required to obtain a ghost propagator prediction compatible with the available corresponding lattice data in the SU(3) case. For the necessary gluon propagator input, we present RGZ tree level fits which account well for the gluon lattice data. Interestingly, this propagator can be rewritten in terms of a running gluon mass. A comparison of both DSE and RGZ results for the ghost propagator is furthermore provided. We also briefly discuss the connection between the RGZ and the OPE $d=2$ gluon condensate., Comment: 21 pages, 3 figures

A low energy effective field theory model for QCD with a scalar color octet field is discussed. The model relates the gluon mass, the constituent quark masses and the quark condensate. The gluon mass comes about $\sqrt{N_c}\, \Lambda_{QCD}$ with the quark condensate being proportional to the gluon mass squared. The model suggests that the restoration of chiral symmetry and the deconfinement transition occur at the same temperature and that, near the transition, the critical exponent for the condensate is twice the gluon mass one. The model also favors the decoupling like solution for the gluon propagator.

The calculation of the Landau gauge gluon propagator performed in Coimbra using lattice QCD simulations is reviewed. Particular attention is given to the behavior of the gluon propagator in the infrared region and the value of $D(0)$. In the second part of the article, the modeling of the lattice data using massive type propagators and Gribov type propagators is discussed. Four different mass scales are required to describe the propagator over the full range of momenta accessed by the simulations discussed here. Furthermore, assuming a momentum dependent gluon mass, we sketch on its functional dependence., Comment: Contribution to the proceedings of the conference "The many faces of QCD", Gent (Belgium), November 1-5, 2010

The infrared behaviour of the lattice Landau gauge gluon propagator is discussed, combining results from simulations with different volumes and lattice spacings. In particular, the Cucchieri-Mendes bounds are computed and their implications for D(0) discussed., Comment: 3 pages, 3 figures. Talk given at "Quark Confinement and the Hadron Spectrum IX", Madrid, Spain, August 30th - September 3rd, 2010

The gluon and ghost propagators are computed using both quenched and dynamical configurations for the same lattice spacings. The Wilson fermions are simulated at several quark masses. Furthermore, the effect of the Gribov copies is evaluated for all sets of configurations., Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, poster presented at Lattice 2010 (Vacuum Structure and Confinement)

The interpretation of the Landau gauge lattice gluon propagator as a massive type bosonic propagator is investigated for i) an infrared constant gluon mass; ii) an ultraviolet constant gluon mass; iii) a momentum dependent mass. We find that the infrared data can be associated with a massive propagator with a constant gluon mass of 651(12) MeV, but the ultraviolet lattice data is not compatible this type of propagator. The scenario of a momentum dependent gluon mass gives a decreasing mass with the momentum, starting from a value of $\sim 630$ MeV in the infrared region and suggesting a $q^2 \ln q^2$ dependence for momenta above 1 GeV., Comment: Contribution to The XXVIII International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory, Lattice2010

The interpretation of the Landau gauge lattice gluon propagator as a massive type bosonic propagator is investigated. Three different scenarios are discussed: i) an infrared constant gluon mass; ii) an ultraviolet constant gluon mass; iii) a momentum dependent mass. We find that the infrared data can be associated with a massive propagator up to momenta $\sim 500$ MeV, with a constant gluon mass of 723(11) MeV, if one excludes the zero momentum gluon propagator from the analysis, or 648(7) MeV, if the zero momentum gluon propagator is included in the data sets. The ultraviolet lattice data is not compatible with a massive type propagator with a constant mass. The scenario of a momentum dependent gluon mass gives a decreasing mass with the momentum, which vanishes in the deep ultraviolet region. Furthermore, we show that the functional forms used to describe the decoupling like solution of the Dyson-Schwinger equations are compatible with the lattice data with similar mass scales., Comment: Version to appear in J. Phys. G. New version include some rewriting and new analysis. In particular, the section on the running mass is new

We consider the gluon propagator $D(p^2)$ at various lattice sizes and spacings in the case of pure SU(3) Yang-Mills gauge theories using the Landau gauge fixing. We discuss a class of fits in the infrared region in order to (in)validate the tree level analytical prediction in terms of the (Refined) Gribov-Zwanziger framework. It turns out that an important role is played by the presence of the widely studied dimension two gluon condensate $\braket{A^2}$. Including this effect allows to obtain an acceptable fit up to 1 \'{a} 1.5 GeV, while corroborating the Refined Gribov-Zwanziger prediction for the gluon propagator. We also discuss the infinite volume extrapolation, leading to the estimate $D(0)=8.3\pm0.5\text{GeV}^{-2}$. As a byproduct, we can also provide the prediction $\braket{g^2 A^2}\approx 3\text{GeV}^2$ obtained at the renormalization scale $\mu=10\text{GeV}$., Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, updated version, accepted for publication in Phs.Rev.D

In lattice QCD, a confining potential for a static quark-antiquark pair can be computed with the Wilson loop technique. This potential, dominated by a linear potential at moderate distances, is consistent with the confinement with a flux tube, an extended and scalar system also directly observable in lattice QCD. Quantized flux tubes have also been observed in another class of confinement, the magnetic confinement in type II superconductors. On the other hand the solution of Schwinger Dyson Equations, say with the Landau gauge fixing and the truncation of the series of Feynman diagrams, already at the rainbow level for the self energy and at the ladder level for the Bethe Salpeter equation, provides a signal of a possible inverse quartic potential in momentum space derived from one gluon and one ghost exchange, consistent with confinement. Here we address the successes, difficulties and open problems of the matching of these two different perspectives of confinement, the Schwinger-Dyson perspective versus the flux tube perspective., Comment: 12 pages, 18 figures; talk presented at QCD-TNT, Trento, 7-11 sep 2009

The Landau gauge lattice gluon propagator is discussed for different sets of lattices. Particular attention is given to its infrared properties. Our results show that the lattice propagator can be made compatible with either the decoupling-like or the scaling-like solution of the Dyson-Schwinger equations. Furthermore, the analysis of the Cucchieri-Mendes bounds is performed onsidering large volume simulations and the Oliveira-Silva ratios are computed. If the first do not give a clear answer about the value of D(0), the second method favors a $D(0) = 0$. Finally, the SU(3) and SU(2) propagators are compared in the infrared. It comes out that the propagators are different although the infrared exponents seem to be similar. The analysis suggests a scaling behaviour $D(0) \sim N$ with the gauge group SU(N)., Comment: Talk given at International Workshop on QCD Green's Functions, Confinement, and Phenomenology - QCD-TNT09, September 2009, Trento, Italy

We report on the infrared behaviour of the lattice gluon propagator. The bounds on D(0) and their behaviour with the lattice volume are investigated, together with the full propagator. Moreover, a study of the gluon propagator using different lattice spacings is carried out., Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, talk presented at Lattice 2009 (Vacuum Structure and Confinement)

We study exotic static 3-body potentials, utilizing generalized Wilson Loops in SU(3) lattice QCD. For the quark-antiquark-gluon techniques we address the angles of 0, 45, 60, 90, 120, 135 and 180 degrees, between the quark-gluon and the antiquark-gluon segments. We calculate the form of the static potential and discuss whether, or not, two-body interactions exist between the three different bodies, and study the existence of repulsion between the strings. We also perform a first study of the interactions in the system of three gluon., Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, Presented at the 26th International Symposium on Lattice Field Theory (Lattice 2008), Williamsburg, Virginia, USA, July 14-19, 2008

The Cucchieri-Mendes bounds for the gluon propagator are discussed for the four dimensional pure gauge SU(3) theory. Assuming a pure power law dependence on the inverse of the lattice volume, the lattice data gives a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator in the infinite volume limit. Our investigation shows that this result is robust against variations of the lattice volumes and corrections to the power law. Moreover, it is consistent with the Gribov-Zwanziger horizon condition and contradicts the SU(2) analysis, which assumed the same type of dependence on the inverse of the volume. Our analysis considers also more general ansatze that, although not conclusive, open the possibility of having $D(0) \ne 0$ in the infinite volume limit. A solution to this puzzle requires further investigations., Comment: Minor changes. Figures redone using a different axis variable

The Landau-gauge gluon propagator is computed for the SU(3) gauge theory on lattices up to a size of $32^3 \times 200$. We use the standard Wilson action at $\beta = 6.0$ and compare our results with previous computations using large asymmetric and symmetric lattices. In particular, we focus on the impact of the lattice geometry and momentum cuts to achieve compatibility between data from symmetric and asymmetric lattices for a large range of momenta., Comment: Poster presented at Lattice2007, Regensburg, July 30 - August 4, 2007

We compare two Landau gauge fixing methods, aiming to find the global maximum of the gauge fixing functional. Moreover, a systematic effect of Gribov copies in the gluon and ghost propagators computed in Landau gauge is presented and discussed., Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, poster presented at Lattice 2007 (Vacuum structure and confinement)

The compatibility of the pure power law infrared solution of QCD Dyson-Schwinger equations (DSE) and lattice data for the gluon and ghost propagators in Landau gauge is discussed. For the gluon propagator, the lattice data is compatible with the DSE infrared solution with an exponent $\kappa\sim0.53$, measured using a technique that suppresses finite volume effects and allows to model these corrections to the lattice data. For the ghost propagator, the lattice data does not seem to follow the infrared DSE power law solution., Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, talk presented at Lattice 2007 (Vacuum structure and confinement)

A comparative study of the lattice Landau gauge gluon and ghost propagators for SU(2) and SU(3) pure Yang-Mills theories is carried out. The data were specially produced with equivalent lattice parameters to allow for a careful comparison of the two cases. We find very good agreement between the two theories. Our results seem to confirm the predicton of Schwinger-Dyson equations that the infrared exponents are independent of the gauge group SU(N)., Comment: Talk presented at Lattice2007, Regensburg, July 30 - August 4, 2007 References corrected and added a new reference

The infrared behavior of gluon and ghost propagators in Yang-Mills theories is of central importance for understanding quark and gluon confinement in QCD. While simulations of pure SU(3) gauge theory correspond to the physical case in the limit of infinite quark mass, the SU(2) case (i.e. pure two-color QCD) is usually employed as a simplification, in the hope that qualitative features be the same as for the SU(3) case. Here we carry out the first comparative study of lattice (Landau) propagators for these two gauge groups. Our data were especially produced with equivalent lattice parameters in order to allow a careful comparison of the two cases. We find very good agreement between SU(2) ans SU(3) propagators, showing that in the IR limit the equivalence of the two cases is quantitative, at least down to about 1 GeV. Our results suggest that the infrared behavior of these propagators is independent of the gauge group SU(N_c), as predicted by Schwinger-Dyson equations., Comment: 5 pages, 1 table, 4 figures; modified title, abstract and text; added references; to appear in Phys. Rev. D

The compatibility of the pure power law infrared solution of QCD and lattice data for the gluon and ghost propagators in Landau gauge is discussed. For the gluon propagator, the lattice data is well described by a pure power law with an infrared exponent $\kappa \sim 0.53$, in the Dyson-Schwinger notation. $\kappa$ is measured using a technique that suppresses finite volume effects. This value implies a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator, in agreement with the Gribov-Zwanziger confinement scenario. For the ghost propagator, the lattice data seem not to follow a pure power law, at least for the range of momenta accessed in our simulation., Comment: Substantial rewriting with new material included. The new version includes a new and more deep discussion of the finite volume and asymmetry effects

We study the long distance interaction for hybrid hadrons, with a static gluon, a quark and an antiquark with lattice QCD techniques. A Wilson loop adequate to the static hybrid three-body system is developed and, using a 24^3 x 48 periodic lattice with beta=6.2 and a ~ 0.075 fm, two different geometries for the gluon-quark segment and the gluon-antiquark segment are investigated. When these segments are perpendicular, the static potential is compatible with confinement realized with a pair of fundamental strings, one linking the gluon to the quark and another linking the same gluon to the antiquark. When the segments are parallel and superposed, the total string tension is larger and agrees with the Casimir Scaling measured by Bali. This can be interpreted with a type-II superconductor analogy for the confinement in QCD, with repulsion of the fundamental strings and with the string tension of the first topological excitation of the string (the adjoint string) larger than the double of the fundamental string tension., Comment: 4 pages RevTeX, 4 figures

We report on the infrared limit of the quenched lattice Landau gauge gluon propagator computed from large asymmetric lattices. In particular, the compatibility of the pure power law infrared solution $(q^2)^{2\kappa}$ of the Dyson-Schwinger equations is investigated and the exponent $\kappa$ is measured. Some results for the ghost propagator and for the running coupling constant will also be shown., Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures. Talk given at "Quark Confinement and the Hadron Spectrum VII", Azores, Portugal, 2-7 September 2006

We report on the infrared limit of the quenched lattice Landau gauge gluon and ghost propagators computed from large asymmetric lattices. In particular, the compatibility of the pure power law infrared solutions of the Dyson-Schwinger equations with the lattice data is investigated and the exponent $\kappa$ is measured. The gluon lattice data favour $\kappa \sim 0.52$, which would imply a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator. For the subset of lattices where the ghost propagator was computed, the data is not compatible with a pure power law. Our data also show a decreasing running coupling in the infrared region. Furthermore, positivity violation for the gluon propagator is also verified., Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, talk presented at Lattice 2006 (Confinement and Topology); minor changes, PoS(LAT2006)075

We report on the infrared limit of the quenched lattice Landau gauge gluon propagator computed from large asymmetric lattices. In particular, the compatibility of the pure power law infrared solution $(q^2)^{2\kappa}$ of the Dyson-Schwinger equations is investigated and the exponent $\kappa$ is measured. The lattice data favours $\kappa \sim 0.52$, which would imply a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator as predicted by the Kugo-Ojima confinement mechanism and the Zwanziger horizon condition. Results for the ghost propagator and for the running coupling constant are shown., Comment: 7 pages, 13 figures, proceedings of "Infrared QCD in Rio", Rio de Janeiro, 5-9 June, 2006; minor changes, figure 1 now includes ghost data

We report on the infrared limit of the quenched lattice Landau gauge gluon and ghost propagators as well as the strong coupling constant computed from large asymmetric lattices. The infrared lattice propagators are compared with the pure power law solutions from Dyson-Schwinger equations (DSE). For the gluon propagator, the lattice data is compatible with the DSE solution. The preferred measured gluon exponent being $\sim 0.52$, favouring a null zero momentum propagator. The lattice ghost propagator shows finite volume effects and, for the volumes considered, the propagator does not follow a pure power law. Furthermore, the strong coupling constant is computed and its infrared behaviour investigated., Comment: Talk given at QNP06; final version with improved english, accepted for publication at EPJA

The infrared limit of the lattice Landau gauge gluon propagator is studied. We show that the lattice data is compatible with the pure power law $(q^2)^{2 \kappa}$ solution of the Dyson-Schwinger equations. Using various lattice volumes, the infinite volume limit for the exponent $\kappa$ is measured. Although, the results allow $\kappa = 0.498 - 0.525$, the lattice data favours $\kappa \sim 0.52$, which would imply a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator., Comment: Final version to appear in Phys Rev D

We report on a preliminary study of the volume dependence of the gluon propagator. The propagator is computed using different lattice volumes, its extrapolation to infinite volume is investigated with particular attention to the its IR behaviour. Our data shows a mild but measurable dependence with the volume. Unfortunately, we are not able yet to clarify its behaviour close to zero momentum., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. Talk presented at Lattice 2005 (Theoretical Developments), Dublin, July 25-30, 2005

The gluon propagator is computed in large asymmetric lattices, accessing momenta around 100 MeV and smaller. Our study tries to check the compatibility of the recent solutions of the gluon-ghost Dyson-Schwinger equations with lattice results. In particular the exponent $\kappa$, which characterizes the solutions for the infrared, is measured. Results favours a vanishing zero momentum gluon propagator. We also report on the compatibility of various functional forms used to fit the Dyson-Schwinger solution for the full range of momenta and the lattice gluon propagator., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures. Talk presented at Lattice 2005 (Theoretical Developments), Dublin, July 25-30, 2005

The quenched Landau gauge gluon propagator is investigated in lattice QCD with large assimetric lattices, accessing momenta as low as $q \sim 100$ MeV or smaller. Our investigation focus on the IR limit of the gluon dressing function, testing the compatibility with recent solutions of the Dyson-Schwinger equations. In particular, the low energy parameters $\kappa$ and $\alpha (0)$ are measured., Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure. Talk given at Quark Confinement and the Hadron Spectrum VI 2004, Italy, 21-25 Sep. References correct

We address the problem of Gribov copies in lattice QCD. The gluon propagator is computed, in the Landau gauge, using 302 ($\beta = 5.8$) $12^4$ configurations gauge fixed to different copies. The results of the simulation shows that: i) the effect of Gribov copies is small (less than 10%); ii) Gribov copies change essentially the lowest momenta components ($q < 2.6$ GeV); iii) within the statistical accuracy of our simulation, the effect of Gribov copies is resolved if statistical errors are multiplied by a factor of two or three. Moreover, when modelling the gluon propagator, different sets of Gribov copies produce different sets of parameters not, necessarily, compatible within one standard deviation. Finally, our data supports a gluon propagator which, for large momenta, behaves like a massive gluon propagator with a mass of 1.1 GeV.

An algorithm for gauge fixing to the minimal Landau gauge in lattice QCD is described. The method, a combination of an evolutionary algorithm with a steepest descent method, is able to solve the problem of the nonperturbative gauge fixing. The performance of the combined algorithm is investigated on $8^4$, $\beta = 5.7$, and $16^4$, $\beta = 6.0$, lattice SU(3) gauge configurations., Comment: To appear in Comp. Phys. Comm. Minor changes in text

We address the problem of the gauge fixing versus Gribov copies in lattice gauge theories. For the Landau gauge, results show that a suitable combination of evolutionary algorithms with traditional steepest descent methods identifies the global maximum of the optimisation function. We discuss the performance of the combined algorithm on small cubic lattices for SU(2) and SU(3)., Comment: Lattice2001(algorithms)

We present the results of the first lattice study of semileptonic decays of baryons containing a b-quark. Predictions for the decay distributions are given and the Isgur-Wise functions for heavy baryons are computed, for values of the velocity transfer up to about omega=1.2. The computations are performed on a 24^3 x 48 lattice at beta=6.2 using the Sheikholeslami-Wohlert action in the quenched approximation., Comment: 55 pages, 17 ps figures, Latex 2.09, uses epsf

We present an exploratory study of a one-parameter family of covariant, non-perturbative lattice gauge-fixing conditions, that can be implemented through a simple Monte Carlo algorithm. We demonstrate that at the numerical level the procedure is feasible, and as a first application we examine the gauge dependence of the gluon propagator., Comment: 11 pages, Latex, epsf.sty included + 5 PostScript pictures