Contributions to the QCD Pressure Beyond Perturbation Theory

In this article we report on a new proposal to treat the infrared problems of thermal QCD by taking into account explicitly the confining influence of the Gribov horizon. In order to make clear the possible value of such an approach, we briefly review the most important arguments why a straightforward perturbative description of finite-temperature QCD is unlikely to be successful. From the infrared problems of thermal perturbation theory one can conclude that confinement effects and bound states probably play an important role also in the high-temperature phase. To set the stage we recount the supposed role of the Gribov horizon for confinement, before we turn to the application to finite-temperature theory. In the current approach it has been found that the contributions to the free energy from the explicit inclusion of the horizon begin to set in at order g6 – precisely where the infrared problems of thermal QCD lead to a breakdown of ordinary perturbation theory. From the study of observables (free energy, anomaly, bulk viscosity) we also note that for thermodynamic observables the leading order term obtained by such an expansion in the coupling strongly deviates from the more complete numerical solution. This can be regarded as yet another sign for general problems of series expansions in thermal QCD.