“Gluelump” spectrum and adjoint source potential in lattice QCD3

We calculate the potential between “quarks” which are in the adjoint representation of SU(2) color in the three-dimensional lattice theory. We work in the scaling region of the theory and at large quark separations R. We also calculate the masses MQg of color-singlet bound states formed by coupling an adjoint quark to adjoint glue (“gluelumps”). Good scaling behavior is found for the masses of both magnetic (angular momentum J = 0) and electric (J = 1) gluelumps, and the magnetic gluelump is found to be the lowest-lying state. It is naively expected that the potential for adjoint quarks should saturate above a separation Rscr where it becomes energetically favorable to produce a pair of gluelumps. We obtain a good estimate of the naive screening distance Rscr. However we find little evidence of saturation in the potential out to separations R of about 1.5Rscr.