Thermodynamics of the PNJL model

QCD thermodynamics is investigated by means of the Polyakov-loop-extended Nambu-Jona-Lasinio (PNJL) model, in which quarks couple simultaneously to the chiral condensate and to a background temporal gauge field representing Polyakov loop dynamics. The behaviour of the Polyakov loop as a function of temperature is obtained by minimising the thermodynamic potential of the system. A Taylor series expansion of the pressure is performed. Pressure difference and quark number density are then evaluated up to sixth order in the quark chemical potential and compared to the corresponding lattice data. The validity of the Taylor expansion is discussed within our model through a comparison between the full results and the truncated ones. (orig.)