Nonperturbative Constraints Research Articles

From free fields to interacting SCFTs via representation theory

We ask when it is possible to construct arbitrary unitary multiplets of the superconformal algebra with eight Poincaré supercharges that are compatible with locality from (continuous deformations of) representations in free field theories. We answer this question in two, three, and five dimensions. In four dimensions, we resort to an intricate but self-consistent web of conjectures. If correct, these conjectures imply various new non-perturbative constraints on short multiplets in any local unitary 4d N\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ \\mathcal{N} $$\\end{document} = 2 superconformal field theory and on an unusual set of related vertex algebras. Throughout, we connect our results with properties of deformations in the space of theories.

Pseudo-scalar meson spectral properties in the chiral crossover region of QCD

Determining the type of excitations that can exist in a thermal medium is key to understanding how hadronic matter behaves at extreme temperatures. In this work we study this question for pseudo-scalar mesons comprised of light-strange and strange-strange quarks, analysing how their low-energy spectral properties are modified as one passes through the high-temperature chiral crossover region between T = 145.6 MeV and 172.3 MeV. We utilise the non-perturbative constraints satisfied by correlation functions at finite temperature in order to extract the low-energy meson spectral function contributions from spatial correlator lattice data in Nf = 2 + 1 flavour QCD. The robustness of these contributions are tested by comparing their predictions with data for the corresponding temporal correlator at different momentum values. We find that around the pseudo-critical temperature Tpc the data in both the light-strange and strange-strange channels is consistent with the presence of a distinct stable particle-like ground state component, a so-called thermoparticle excitation. As the temperature increases this excitation undergoes collisional broadening, and this is qualitatively the same in both channels. These findings suggest that pseudo-scalar mesons in QCD have a bound-state-like structure at low energies within the chiral crossover region which is still strongly influenced by the vacuum states of the theory.

A bootstrap study of minimal model deformations

For QFTs in AdS the boundary correlation functions remain conformal even if the bulk theory has a scale. This allows one to constrain RG flows with numerical conformal bootstrap methods. We apply this idea to flows between two-dimensional CFTs, focusing on deformations of the tricritical and ordinary Ising model. We provide non-perturbative constraints for the boundary correlation functions of these flows and compare them with conformal perturbation theory in the vicinity of the fixed points. We also reproduce a completely general constraint on the sign of the \\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$T\\overline{T }$$\\end{document} deformation in two dimensions.

Lieb-Schultz-Mattis anomalies and web of dualities induced by gauging in quantum spin chains

Lieb-Schultz-Mattis (LSM) theorems impose non-perturbative constraints on the zero-temperature phase diagrams of quantum lattice Hamiltonians (always assumed to be local in this paper). LSM theorems have recently been interpreted as the lattice counterparts to mixed ’t Hooft anomalies in quantum field theories that arise from a combination of crystalline and global internal symmetry groups. Accordingly, LSM theorems have been reinterpreted as LSM anomalies. In this work, we provide a systematic diagnostic for LSM anomalies in one spatial dimension. We show that gauging subgroups of the global internal symmetry group of a quantum lattice model obeying an LSM anomaly delivers a dual quantum lattice Hamiltonian such that its internal and crystalline symmetries mix non-trivially through a group extension. This mixing of crystalline and internal symmetries after gauging is a direct consequence of the LSM anomaly, i.e., it can be used as a diagnostic of an LSM anomaly. We exemplify this procedure for a quantum spin-1/2 chain obeying an LSM anomaly resulting from combining a global internal \mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{2}×\mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{2}ℤ2×ℤ2 symmetry with translation or reflection symmetry. We establish a triality of models by gauging a \mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{2}\subset\mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{2}×\mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{2}ℤ2⊂ℤ2×ℤ2 symmetry in two ways, one of which amounts to performing a Kramers-Wannier duality, while the other implements a Jordan-Wigner duality. We discuss the mapping of the phase diagram of the quantum spin-1/2 XYZXYZ chains under such a triality. We show that the deconfined quantum critical transitions between Neel and dimer orders are mapped to either topological or conventional Landau-Ginzburg transitions. Finally, we extend our results to \mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{n}ℤn clock models with \mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{n}×\mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{n}ℤn×ℤn global internal symmetry, and provide a reinterpretation of the dual internal symmetries in terms of \mathbb{Z}^{\,}_{n}ℤn charge and dipole symmetries.

From celestial correlators to AdS, and back

We present a general relation between celestial correlation functions in d-dimensions and Witten diagrams in (d + 1)-dimensional Euclidean anti-de Sitter (EAdS) space, to all orders in perturbation theory. Contact diagram processes are proportional to contact Witten diagrams and particle exchanges can be recast as a continuum of particle exchanges in EAdS where the exchanged particles carrying unitary Principal Series representations of SO(d + 1, 1). One can then try to import familiar EAdS techniques to study the properties of celestial correlators. In this work we use this relation to infer the analytic structure of the spectral density in the conformal partial wave expansion of celestial correlators which, at least perturbatively, should be a meromorphic function of the spectral parameter. We also discuss non-perturbative constraints from unitarity in Euclidean Conformal Field Theory, which requires positivity of the spectral density. This extends similar relations recently uncovered between boundary correlation functions in de Sitter space and Witten diagrams in EAdS, suggesting that EAdS could play a central role in efforts towards holography for all lambdas.

Nonperturbative constraints from symmetry and chirality on Majorana zero modes and defect quantum numbers in (2+1) dimensions

In (1+1)D topological phases, unpaired Majorana zero modes (MZMs) can arise only if the internal symmetry group $G_f$ of the ground state splits as $G_f = G_b \times \mathbb{Z}_2^f$, where $\mathbb{Z}_2^f$ is generated by fermion parity, $(-1)^F$. In contrast, (2+1)D topological superconductors (TSC) can host unpaired MZMs at defects even when $G_f$ is not of the form $G_b \times \mathbb{Z}_2^f$. In this paper we study how $G_f$ together with the chiral central charge $c_-$ strongly constrain the existence of unpaired MZMs and the quantum numbers of symmetry defects. Our results utilize a recent algebraic characterization of (2+1)D invertible fermionic topological states, which provides a non-perturbative approach based on topological quantum field theory, beyond free fermions. We study physically relevant groups such as $\mathrm{U}(1)^f\rtimes H,\mathrm{SU}(2)^f \times H, \mathrm{U}(2)^f\rtimes H $, generic Abelian groups, as well as more general compact Lie groups, antiunitary symmetries and crystalline symmetries. We present an algebraic formula for the fermionic crystalline equivalence principle, which gives an equivalence between states with crystalline and internal symmetries. In light of our theory, we discuss several previously proposed realizations of unpaired MZMs in TSC materials such as Sr$_2$RuO$_4$, transition metal dichalcogenides and iron superconductors, in which crystalline symmetries are often important; in some cases we present additional predictions for the properties of these models.

Multipoint correlators on the supersymmetric Wilson line defect CFT

We study multipoint correlators of protected scalars on the Maldacena-Wilson line in mathcal{N} = 4 SYM. Working at weak coupling in the planar limit, we derive an explicit recursion relation that captures next-to-leading order correlators with an arbitrary number of insertions of the fundamental scalar field. By pinching fundamental scalars together, we can build composite protected operators with higher values of the R-charge. Our result then encompasses arbitrary n-point correlators of protected operators with arbitrary weight. As a demonstration of our method, we give explicit formulae for correlators with up to six points. Using these results we observe that all our correlators are annihilated by a special class of differential operators. We conjecture that these differential operators are non-perturbative constraints and can be considered a multipoint extension of the superconformal Ward identities satisfied by four-point functions.

Conformality and self-duality of Nf = 2 QED3

We study the IR phase of three dimensional quantum electrodynamics (QED3) coupled to Nf=2 flavors of two-component Dirac fermions, which has been controversial for decades. This theory has been proposed to be self-dual with symmetry enhancement (SU(2)f×U(1)t)/Z2→O(4) at the IR fixed point. We focus on the four-point correlator of monopole operators with unit topological charge of U(1)t. We illustrate the O(4)→SU(2)f×U(1)t branching rules based on an O(4) symmetric positive structure in the monopole four-point crossing equations. We use conformal bootstrap method to derive nonperturbative constraints on the CFT data and test the conformality and self-duality of Nf=2 QED3. In particular we find the CFT data obtained from previous lattice simulations can be ruled out by introducing irrelevant assumptions in the spectrum, indicating the IR phase of Nf=2 QED3 is not conformal.

Non-perturbative insights into the spectral properties of QCD at finite temperature

In quantum field theories at finite temperature spectral functions describe how particle systems behave in the presence of a thermal medium. Although data from lattice simulations can in principle be used to determine spectral function characteristics, existing methods rely on the extraction of these quantities from temporal correlators, which requires one to circumvent an illposed inverse problem. In these proceedings we report on a recent approach that instead utilises the non-perturbative constraints imposed by field locality to extract spectral function information directly from spatial correlators. In particular, we focus on the application of this approach to lattice QCD data of the spatial pseudo-scalar meson correlator in the temperature range 220−960 MeV, and outline why this data supports the conclusion that there exists a distinct pion state above the chiral pseudo-critical temperature Tpc.

Towards bootstrapping RG flows: sine-Gordon in AdS

The boundary correlation functions for a Quantum Field Theory (QFT) in an Anti-de Sitter (AdS) background can stay conformally covariant even if the bulk theory undergoes a renormalization group (RG) flow. Studying such correlation functions with the numerical conformal bootstrap leads to non-perturbative constraints that must hold along the entire flow. In this paper we carry out this analysis for the sine-Gordon RG flows in AdS2, which start with a free (compact) scalar in the UV and end with well-known massive integrable theories that saturate many S-matrix bootstrap bounds. We numerically analyze the correlation functions of both breathers and kinks and provide a detailed comparison with perturbation theory near the UV fixed point. Our bounds are often saturated to one or two orders in perturbation theory, as well as in the flat-space limit, but not necessarily in between.

Spectral representation of the shear viscosity for local scalar QFTs at finite temperature

In local scalar quantum field theories (QFTs) at finite temperature correlation functions are known to satisfy certain non-perturbative constraints, which for two-point functions in particular implies the existence of a generalisation of the standard K\"{a}ll\'{e}n-Lehmann representation. In this work, we use these constraints in order to derive a spectral representation for the shear viscosity arising from the thermal asymptotic states, $\eta_{0}$. As an example, we calculate $\eta_{0}$ in $\phi^{4}$ theory, establishing its leading behaviour in the small and large coupling regimes.

Lieb-Schultz-Mattis-type theorems and other nonperturbative results for strongly correlated systems with conserved dipole moments

Non-perturbative constraints on many body physics--such as the famous Lieb-Schultz-Mattis theorem--are valuable tools for studying strongly correlated systems. To this end, we present a number of non-perturbative results that constrain the low-energy physics of systems having conserved dipole moments. We find that for these systems, a unique translationally invariant gapped ground state is only possible if the polarization of the system is integer. Furthermore, if a lattice system also has $U(1)$ subsystem charge conservation symmetry, a unique gapped ground state is only possible if the particle filling along these subsystems is integer. We also apply these methods to spin systems, and determine criteria for the existence of a new type of magnetic response plateau in the presence of a non-uniform magnetic field. Finally, we formulate a version of Luttinger's theorem for 1D systems consisting of dipoles.

Transverse Takahashi identities and their implications for gauge independent dynamical chiral symmetry breaking

In this article, we employ transverse Takahashi identities to impose valuable non-perturbative constraints on the transverse part of the fermion-photon vertex in terms of new form factors, the so called $Y_i$ functions. We show that the implementation of these identities is crucial in ensuring the correct local gauge transformation of the fermion propagator and its multiplicative renormalizability. Our construction incorporates the correct symmetry properties of the $Y_i$ under charge conjugation operation as well as their well-known one-loop expansion in the asymptotic configuration of incoming and outgoing momenta. Furthermore, we make an explicit analysis of various existing constructions of this vertex against the demands of transverse Takahashi identities and the previously established key features of quantum electrodynamics, such as gauge invariance of the critical coupling above which chiral symmetry is dynamically broken. We construct a simple example in its quenched version and compute the mass function as we vary the coupling strength and also calculate the corresponding anomalous dimensions $\gamma_m$. There is an excellent fit to the Miransky scalling law and we find $\gamma_m=1$ rather naturally in accordance with some earlier results in literature, using arguments based on Cornwall-Jackiw-Tomboulis effective potential technique. Moreover, we numerically confirm the gauge invariance of this critical coupling.

Non-perturbative constraints on the quark and ghost propagators

In QCD both the quark and ghost propagators are important for governing the non-perturbative dynamics of the theory. It turns out that the dynamical properties of the quark and ghost fields impose non-perturbative constraints on the analytic structure of these propagators. In this work we explicitly derive these constraints. In doing so we establish that the corresponding spectral densities include components which are multiples of discrete mass terms, and that the propagators are permitted to contain singular contributions involving derivatives of δ(p), both of which are particularly relevant in the context of confinement.

Universal Relation among the Many-Body Chern Number, Rotation Symmetry, and Filling.

Understanding the interplay between the topological nature and the symmetry property of interacting systems has been a central matter of condensed matter physics in recent years. In this Letter, we establish nonperturbative constraints on the quantized Hall conductance of many-body systems with arbitrary interactions. Our results allow one to readily determine the many-body Chern number modulo a certain integer without performing any integrations, solely based on the rotation eigenvalues and the average particle density of the many-body ground state.

Galilean invariant resummation schemes of cosmological perturbations

Many of the methods proposed so far to go beyond Standard Perturbation Theory break invariance under time-dependent boosts (denoted here as extended Galilean Invariance, or GI). This gives rise to spurious large scale effects which spoil the small scale predictions of these approximation schemes. By using consistency relations we derive fully non-perturbative constraints that GI imposes on correlation functions. We then introduce a method to quantify the amount of GI breaking of a given scheme, and to correct it by properly tailored counterterms. Finally, we formulate resummation schemes which are manifestly GI, discuss their general features, and implement them in the so called Time-Flow, or TRG, equations.

Lorentz constraints on massive three-point amplitudes

Using the helicity-spinor language we explore the non-perturbative constraints that Lorentz symmetry imposes on three-point amplitudes where the asymptotic states can be massive. As it is well known, in the case of only massless states the three-point amplitude is fixed up to a coupling constant by these constraints plus some physical requirements. We find that a similar statement can be made when some of the particles have mass. We derive the generic functional form of the three-point amplitude by virtue of Lorentz symmetry, which displays several functional structures accompanied by arbitrary constants. These constants can be related to the coupling constants of the theory, but in an unambiguous fashion only in the case of one massive particle. Constraints on these constants are obtained by imposing that in the UV limit the massive amplitude matches the massless one. In particular, there is a certain Lorentz frame, which corresponds to projecting all the massive momenta along the same null momentum, where the three-point massive amplitude is fully fixed, and has a universal form.

Hadronic contributions to electroweak observables within DPT

Dispersive approach to quantum chromodynamics is applied to the assessment of hadronic contributions to electroweak observables. The employed approach merges the corresponding perturbative input with intrinsically nonperturbative constraints, which originate in the respective kinematic restrictions. The evaluated hadronic contributions to the muon anomalous magnetic moment and to the shift of the electromagnetic fine structure constant at the scale of Z boson mass conform with recent assessments of these quantities.

Hadronic vacuum polarization function within dispersive approach to QCD

The dispersive approach to quantum chromodynamics is applied to the study of the hadronic vacuum polarization function and associated quantities. This approach merges the intrinsically nonperturbative constraints, which originate in the kinematic restrictions on the respective physical processes, with corresponding perturbative input. The obtained hadronic vacuum polarization function agrees with pertinent lattice simulation data. The evaluated hadronic contributions to the muon anomalous magnetic moment and to the shift of the electromagnetic fine structure constant conform with recent assessments of these quantities.

Constraining quantum critical dynamics: (2+1)D Ising model and beyond.

Quantum critical (QC) phase transitions generally lead to the absence of quasiparticles. The resulting correlated quantum fluid, when thermally excited, displays rich universal dynamics. We establish nonperturbative constraints on the linear-response dynamics of conformal QC systems at finite temperature, in spatial dimensions above 1. Specifically, we analyze the large frequency or momentum asymptotics of observables, which we use to derive powerful sum rules and inequalities. The general results are applied to the O(N) Wilson-Fisher fixed point, describing the QC Ising model when N=1. We focus on the order parameter and scalar susceptibilities, and the dynamical shear viscosity. Connections to simulations, experiments, and gauge theories are made.