English

Gauging spatial symmetries and the classification of topological crystalline phases

Strongly Correlated Electrons 2018-03-21 v6 Materials Science Mathematical Physics math.MP

Abstract

We put the theory of interacting topological crystalline phases on a systematic footing. These are topological phases protected by space-group symmetries. Our central tool is an elucidation of what it means to "gauge" such symmetries. We introduce the notion of a "crystalline topological liquid", and argue that most (and perhaps all) phases of interest are likely to satisfy this criterion. We prove a Crystalline Equivalence Principle, which states that in Euclidean space, crystalline topological liquids with symmetry group GG are in one-to-one correspondence with topological phases protected by the same symmetry GG, but acting *internally*, where if an element of GG is orientation-reversing, it is realized as an anti-unitary symmetry in the internal symmetry group. As an example, we explicitly compute, using group cohomology, a partial classification of bosonic symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases protected by crystalline symmetries in (3+1)-D for 227 of the 230 space groups. For the 65 space groups not containing orientation-reversing elements (Sohncke groups), there are no cobordism invariants which may contribute phases beyond group cohomology, and so we conjecture our classification is complete.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1612.00846,
  title  = {Gauging spatial symmetries and the classification of topological crystalline phases},
  author = {Ryan Thorngren and Dominic V. Else},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1612.00846},
  year   = {2018}
}

Comments

v6 Substantially revised version, with a focus on clarity of arguments and transparency of assumptions. 27 pages + 10 pages of appendices