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Smooth flux-sheets with topological winding modes

The inclusion of the Gaussian-curvature term in the bulk of Polyakov-Kleinert string action renders new boundary terms and conditions by Gauss-Bonnet theorem. Within a leading approximation, the eigenmodes of smooth worldsheets and the free-energy of a gas of open rigid strings appears to be altered at second order in the coupling by the topological term . In analogy to the topological $θ$ term, the Gauss-Bonnet term is introduced into the effective action with a complex coupling to implement signed energy shifts. We investigate the rigid color flux-sheets between two static color sources near the critical point in the light of the topologically induced shifts. The Yang-Mills lattice data of the potential of static quark-antiquark $Q\bar{Q}$ in a heatbath is compared to the string potential. The Monte-Carlo data correspond to link-integrated Polyakov-loop correlators averaged over SU(3) gauge configurations at $β=6.0$. Substantial improvement in the fit behavior is displayed over the nonperturbative source separation distance $0.2$ fm to $1.0$ fm. Remarkably, the returned coupling parameter of the topological term from the fit exhibits a proportionality to a quantum number. These findings suggest that the manifested modes are the winding number of a topological particle on the string's worldsheet.