No Arabic abstract
We present a new framework for studying conformal field theories deformed by one or more relevant operators. The original CFT is described in infinite volume using a basis of states with definite momentum, $P$, and conformal Casimir, $mathcal{C}$. The relevant deformation is then considered using lightcone quantization, with the resulting Hamiltonian expressed in terms of this CFT basis. Truncating to states with $mathcal{C} leq mathcal{C}_{max}$, one can numerically find the resulting spectrum, as well as other dynamical quantities, such as spectral densities of operators. This method requires the introduction of an appropriate regulator, which can be chosen to preserve the conformal structure of the basis. We check this framework in three dimensions for various perturbative deformations of a free scalar CFT, and for the case of a free $O(N)$ CFT deformed by a mass term and a non-perturbative quartic interaction at large-$N$. In all cases, the truncation scheme correctly reproduces known analytic results. We also discuss a general procedure for generating a basis of Casimir eigenstates for a free CFT in any number of dimensions.
We derive dynamics of the entanglement wedge cross section directly from the two-dimensional holographic CFTs with a local operator quench. This derivation is based on the reflected entropy, a correlation measure for mixed states. We further compare these results with the mutual information and ones for RCFTs. Our results directly suggest the classical correlation also plays an important role in the subregion/subregion duality even for dynamical setup. Besides a local operator quench, we study the reflected entropy in a heavy state and provide improved bulk interpretation. We checked the above results also hold for the odd entanglement entropy, which is another measure for mixed states related to the entanglement wedge cross section.
We construct field theories in $2+1$ dimensions with multiple conformal symmetries acting on only one of the spatial directions. These can be considered a conformal extension to subsystem scale invariances, borrowing the language often used for fractons.
I derive an exact integral expression for the ratio of shear viscosity over entropy density $frac{eta}{s}$ for the massless (critical) O(N) model at large N with quartic interactions. The calculation is set up and performed entirely from the field theory side using a non-perturbative resummation scheme that captures all contributions to leading order in large N. In 2+1d, $frac{eta}{s}$ is evaluated numerically at all values of the coupling. For infinite coupling, I find $frac{eta}{s}simeq 0.42(1)times N$. I show that this strong coupling result for the viscosity is universal for a large class of interacting bosonic O(N) models.
The loss of criticality in the form of weak first-order transitions or the end of the conformal window in gauge theories can be described as the merging of two fixed points that move to complex values of the couplings. When the complex fixed points are close to the real axis, the system typically exhibits walking behavior with Miransky (or Berezinsky-Kosterlitz-Thouless) scaling. We present a novel realization of these phenomena at strong coupling by means of the gauge/gravity duality, and give evidence for the conjectured existence of complex conformal field theories at the fixed points.
It is widely expected that at sufficiently high temperatures order is always lost, e.g. magnets loose their ferromagnetic properties. We pose the question of whether this is always the case in the context of quantum field theory in $d$ space dimensions. More concretely, one can ask whether there exist critical points (CFTs) which break some global symmetry at arbitrary finite temperature. The most familiar CFTs do not exhibit symmetry breaking at finite temperature, and moreover, in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, critical points at finite temperature are described by an uncharged black brane which obeys a no-hair theorem. Yet, we show that there exist CFTs which have some of their internal symmetries broken at arbitrary finite temperature. Our main example is a vector model which we study both in the epsilon expansion and arbitrary rank as well as the large rank limit (and arbitrary dimension). The large rank limit of the vector model displays a conformal manifold, a moduli space of vacua, and a deformed moduli space of vacua at finite temperature. The appropriate Nambu-Goldstone bosons including the dilaton-like particle are identified. Using these tools we establish symmetry breaking at finite temperature for finite small $epsilon$. We also prove that a large class of other fixed points, which describe some of the most common quantum magnets, indeed behave as expected and do not break any global symmetry at finite temperature. We discuss some of the consequences of finite temperature symmetry breaking for the spectrum of local operators. Finally, we propose a class of fixed points which appear to be possible candidates for finite temperature symmetry breaking in $d=2$.