Instantons and Monopoles in General Abelian Gauges
Abstract
Description
A relation between the total instanton number and the quantum-numbers of magnetic monopoles that arise in general Abelian gauges in SU(2) Yang-Mills theory is established. The instanton number is expressed as the sum of the `twists' of all monopoles, where the twist is related to a generalized Hopf invariant. The origin of a stronger relation between instantons and monopoles in the Polyakov gauge is discussed.
28 pages, 8 figures; comments added to put work into proper context
28 pages, 8 figures; comments added to put work into proper context