Finite-temperature and finite-time scaling of the directed polymer free energy with respect to its geometrical fluctuations.

We study the fluctuations of the directed polymer in 1+1 dimensions in a Gaussian random environment with a finite correlation length ξ and at finite temperature. We address the correspondence between the geometrical transverse fluctuations of the directed polymer, described by its roughness, and the fluctuations of its free energy, characterized by its two-point correlator. Analytical arguments are provided in favor of a generic scaling law between those quantities, at finite time, nonvanishing ξ, and explicit temperature dependence. Numerical results are in good agreement both for simulations on the discrete directed polymer and on a continuous directed polymer (with short-range correlated disorder). Applications to recent experiments on liquid crystals are discussed.