Rapid holographic phase transition with brane-localized curvature

Abstract

We study the finite-temperature properties of the Randall-Sundrum model in the presence of brane-localized curvature. At high temperature, as dictated by $\mathrm{AdS}/\mathrm{CFT}$, the theory is in a confined phase dual to the planar anti-de Sitter black hole. When the radion is stabilized, \'a la Goldberger-Wise, a holographic first-order phase transition proceeds. The brane-localized curvature contributes to the radion kinetic energy, which allows us to substantially decrease the critical bubble energy. Contrary to previous results, the phase transition is completed at much larger values of N, the number of degrees of freedom in the conformal field theory. Moreover, the value of the bulk scalar on the TeV brane is allowed to become large, consistent with backreaction constraints. Assisted by this fact, we find that for a wide region in the parameter space tunneling happens rather quickly, i.e., ${T}_{n}/{T}_{c}\ensuremath{\sim}\mathcal{O}(0.1--1)$. At zero temperature, the most important signature of brane-localized curvature is the reduction of spin-2 Kaluza-Klein graviton masses and a heavier radion.