k-String tensions and their large-N dependence

Abstract: We consider whether the 1/N corrections to k-string tensions must begin at order 1/N^2, as in the Sine Law, or whether odd powers of 1/N, as in Casimir Scaling, are also acceptable. The issue is important because different models of confinement differ in their predictions for the representation-dependence of k-string tensions, and corrections involving odd powers of 1/N would seem to be ruled out by the large-N expansion. We show, however, that k-string tensions may, in fact, have leading 1/N corrections, and consistency with the large-N expansion, in the open string sector, is achieved by an exact pairwise cancellation among terms involving odd powers of 1/N in particular combinations of Wilson loops. It is shown how these cancellations come about in a concrete example, namely, strong coupling lattice gauge theory with the heat-kernel action, in which k-string tensions follow the Casimir scaling rule.