English

Surface operators in the 6d $\mathcal{N} = (2,0)$ theory

High Energy Physics - Theory 2020-09-29 v2

Abstract

The 6d N=(2,0)\mathcal{N}=(2,0) theory has natural surface operator observables, which are akin in many ways to Wilson loops in gauge theories. We propose a definition of a "locally BPS" surface operator and study its conformal anomalies, the analog of the conformal dimension of local operators. We study the abelian theory and the holographic dual of the large NN theory refining previously used techniques. Introducing non-constant couplings to the scalar fields allows for an extra anomaly coefficient, which we find in both cases to be related to one of the geometrical anomaly coefficients, suggesting a general relation due to supersymmetry. We also comment on surfaces with conical singularities.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2003.12372,
  title  = {Surface operators in the 6d $\mathcal{N} = (2,0)$ theory},
  author = {Nadav Drukker and Malte Probst and Maxime Trépanier},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2003.12372},
  year   = {2020}
}

Comments

31 pages, one figure; v2: fixed numerical factor, reference added, published version

R2 v1 2026-06-23T14:29:13.248Z