Light pseudoscalar meson masses under strong magnetic fields within the SU(3) Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model

Abstract

We calculate the pole masses of pseudoscalar mesons in a strongly magnetized medium within the framework of the SU(3) Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model, using a magnetic field-independent regularization scheme. We employ both a constant and a magnetic field-dependent coupling G(B), the latter being fitted to reproduce lattice QCD results for the pseudocritical chiral transition temperature. Numerical results for the pole masses are obtained for definite parametrizations of the model. For neutral mesons, the use of G(B) provides closer agreement with lattice QCD results, which reveal a decrease of the mass with the external field. On the contrary, charged mesons masses are enhanced by B, showing no sign of the nonmonotonous behavior found in recent lattice QCD simulations.