We investigate the role of framing in a family of 1/24 BPS Wilson loops in ABJ(M) theory, which define flows between 1/6 BPS and the 1/2 BPS superconformal fixed points. We analyze in perturbation theory how framing affects both the expectation values of these operators and the correlation functions of local insertions on the defect, as well as its interplay with RG flow and the g-theorem. We obtain a non-trivial identity between the one-point function of the defect stress tensor and a Q-exact correlator, which establishes a direct link between scale invariance, superconformal invariance and framing, and clarifies the deep connection between scale and cohomological anomalies. Finally, we propose a holographic interpretation of framing at strong coupling, identifying it with a coupling to the background B-field in the dual string theory.
@article{arxiv.2508.21068,
title = {Framed defects in ABJ(M)},
author = {Marco S. Bianchi and Luigi Castiglioni and Silvia Penati and Marcia Tenser and Diego Trancanelli},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2508.21068},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
36 pages, 5 figures; v2: typos fixed, minor changes; v3: minor changes, published version