hep-th papers | Gist.Science

Hep-Th, or high-energy theoretical physics, explores the fundamental building blocks of our universe and the forces that govern them. Researchers in this field use complex mathematics to understand everything from subatomic particles to the behavior of black holes, often pushing the boundaries of what we know about space and time.

At Gist.Science, we monitor the arXiv repository to ensure you stay ahead of the curve in this rapidly evolving discipline. For every new preprint uploaded to arXiv under this category, our team generates both accessible plain-language overviews and detailed technical summaries, making cutting-edge research understandable regardless of your background.

Below are the latest papers in high-energy theoretical physics, curated to help you navigate the most significant recent discoveries.

⚛️ general relativity

The quadratic growth of Krylov spread complexity in the BTZ black hole

This paper establishes a dimension-independent boundary reconstruction of Krylov spread complexity for thermofield-double states, demonstrating that in the BTZ black hole dual, the complexity exhibits intermediate deviations from early-time quadratic growth before returning to asymptotic quadratic behavior, which is matched to a generalized bulk "complexity=anything" object constructed from an infinite series of extrinsic-curvature invariants.

Aranya Bhattacharya, Mario Flory, Michal P. Heller, Emiliano Rizza, Tim Schuhmann2026-08-11

⚛️ general relativity

Schwinger-Keldysh Cosmological Cutting Rules

This paper derives and explicitly verifies Schwinger-Keldysh cutting rules for primordial cosmological correlators, demonstrating how their discontinuities can be expressed as products of lower-order correlators through specific diagrammatic combinations that extend beyond standard observable computations.

Francisco Colipí-Marchant, Gabriel Marin, Gonzalo A. Palma, Francisco Rojas2026-08-10

⚛️ high-energy theory

Black hole Near Horizons through the Looking Glass

This paper demonstrates that the near-horizon geometry of generic non-extremal black holes can be described as a String-Carroll geometry, establishing explicit mappings and analyzing probe dynamics across various black hole examples to lay the groundwork for future quantum investigations.

Arjun Bagchi, Arkachur Bhattacharya, Sharang Rajesh Iyer, K. Narayan2026-08-10

⚛️ general relativity

Finite 4-D Gauss-Bonnet quantum corrections from matter-graviton interactions in a curved background

This paper demonstrates that the controversial Glavan-Lin scaling in 4D Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity naturally arises as a finite, one-loop quantum correction from matter-graviton interactions in a curved background, rather than being an ad-hoc classical modification.

Apurv Keer, S. Shankaranarayanan2026-08-10

⚛️ general relativity

Conformal Dimensions On Causal Random Geometry

This paper analytically demonstrates that the conformal dimensions of fields in the Ising model coupled to two-dimensional causal dynamical triangulations align with those on a fixed lattice, contrasting with Liouville gravity predictions by utilizing lattice methods and an adapted Duplantier-Sheffield framework.

Ryan Barouki, Henry Stubbs, John Wheater2026-08-07

⚛️ high-energy theory

Running Quantum Computers in Discovery Mode

This paper demonstrates that a hybrid quantum-classical learning agent can autonomously discover significant many-body quantum phenomena, such as discrete time crystals and dual-unitary circuits, by optimizing an "interest function" on a 36-qubit superconducting processor.

Aydin Deger, Benedikt Placke, G. J. Sreejith, Alessio Lerose, S. L. Sondhi2026-08-07

🔢 mathematics

Boundary structure of gauge fields on asymptotically AdS spaces

This paper employs the gauge PDE approach and introduces a novel concept of $Q$ -boundary to systematically construct a recursive boundary calculus that derives explicit equations, including higher-order conformal Yang-Mills and obstruction equations, for gauge fields on asymptotically AdS spaces by treating the boundary-defining function as a dynamical field.

Maxim Grigoriev, Mikhail Markov2026-08-07

⚛️ high-energy theory

Consistent Scattering Amplitudes, Yang-Mills, the Higgs Mechanism and the EFTs Beyond

This paper derives fundamental constraints on unitary, local, and perturbative $S$ -matrices in 4D to reconstruct the complete structure of massless and massive scattering amplitudes, demonstrating that the consistency of massive vector boson scattering necessitates standard Yang-Mills Lie algebra properties and the Higgs mechanism for full unitarization while charting a broader landscape of effective field theories.

Timothy Trott2026-08-07

⚛️ general relativity

Living on the Edge of Effective Field Theory: Near-Extremal Black Holes in Quadratic Gravity

This paper investigates how near-extremal black holes in dynamical Chern-Simons and scalar Gauss-Bonnet gravity amplify higher-derivative corrections to reveal distinct perturbative breakdown mechanisms, finding that while the former theory maintains a regular extremal limit with enhanced symmetry, the latter develops unavoidable horizon singularities and divergent tidal forces that invalidate the effective field theory expansion despite finite curvature invariants.

Kelvin Ka-Ho Lam, Gary T. Horowitz, Nicolás Yunes2026-08-07

⚛️ high-energy theory

Adiabatic Deformations of Black Hole Moduli: I. Canonical Slices and Fredholm Solvability

This paper establishes a framework for analyzing the leading-order adiabatic response of static black holes to slowly evolving asymptotic moduli by characterizing the resulting geometric and functional-analytic problems through explicit scalar criteria, demonstrating that the existence and uniqueness of the deformation reduce to a single scalar matching condition under transversality and Fredholm hypotheses.

Karim Benakli, Anna Chrysostomou2026-08-07

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