The quenched limit of lattice QCD at non-zero baryon number

We discuss the thermodynamics of gluons in the background of static quark sources. In order to do so we formulate the quenched limit of QCD at non-zero baryon number. A first numerical analysis of this system shows that it undergoes a smooth deconfining transition. We find evidence for a region of coexisting phases that becomes broader with increasing baryon number density. Although the action is in our formulation explicitly Z(3) symmetric the Polyakov loop expectation value becomes non-zero already in the low temperature phase. It indicates that the heavy quark potential stays finite at large distances, i.e. the string between static quarks breaks at non-zero baryon number density already in the hadronic phase. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.