T-μ quark matter phase transitions and critical endpoint in nonlocal PNJL models under a strong magnetic field

Abstract

We study the T-μ phase diagram of quark matter under the influence of a strong uniform magnetic field in the framework of a nonlocal extension of the Polyakov-Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model (PNJL). The existence of a critical endpoint (CEP) is found for the whole considered range of the magnetic field (up to 1 GeV2). We analyze the location of this CEP as a function of the external field and discuss the presence of inverse magnetic catalysis for nonzero chemical potentials. Our results show that the temperature of the CEP decreases with the magnetic field, in contrast to the behavior observed in local NJL/PNJL models.