Gauge-Higgs Unification models are theories where the Higgs field is identified with some of the extra-dimensional components of the gauge field.
One motivation for these models is that the extra-dimensional gauge symmetry protects the Higgs potential from divergences in the ultra-violet cut-off.
Perturbative studies indicate that fermions are necessary to trigger the Higgs mechanism. Given the non-renormalizability of gauge theories in dimensions higher than four, we study non-perturbatively the simplest model which is a five-dimensional SU(2) gauge theory on a orbifold.
The starting point is the formulation on an anisotropic Euclidean lattice.
Results using a semi-analytic mean-field expansion and Monte Carlo simulations show that the Higgs mechanism takes place without fermions and support an alternative view of the lattice orbifold as a five-dimensional bosonic superconductor.