Neutral pseudoscalar and vector meson masses under strong magnetic fields in an extended NJL model: mixing effects

Mixing effects on the mass spectrum of light neutral pseudoscalar and vector mesons in the presence of an external uniform magnetic field $\vec B$ are studied in the framework of a two-flavor NJL-like model. The model includes isoscalar and isovector couplings both in the scalar-pseudoscalar and vector sectors, and also incorporates flavor mixing through a 't Hooft-like term. Numerical results for the $B$ dependence of meson masses are compared with present lattice QCD results. In particular, it is shown that the mixing between pseudoscalar and vector meson states leads to a significant reduction of the mass of the lightest state. The role of chiral symmetry and the effect of the alignment of quark magnetic moments in the presence of the magnetic field are discussed.