Related papers: Axions, Higher-Groups, and Emergent Symmetry
We study higher-form symmetries and a higher group in the low energy limit of a $(3+1)$-dimensional axion electrodynamics with a massive axion and a massive photon. A topological field theory describing topological excitations with the…
We present a connection between two known solutions to the strong-CP problem: the standard introduction of axions and the extra-dimensional one, relying on topological arguments. Using an equivalent lower-dimensional set-up with a warped…
We study non-invertible global symmetries in $(3+1)$-dimensional axion electrodynamics with a massless axion and a massless photon. In addition to a previously known non-invertible 0-form shift symmetry of the axion, we find a…
We show that axion phenomenology may be significantly different than conventionally assumed in theories which exhibit late phase transitions (below the QCD scale). In such theories one can find multiple pseudoscalars with axion-like…
These notes are intended to be a pedagogical introduction to higher-form symmetries, which are symmetries whose charged objects are extended operators supported on lines, surfaces, and etc. This subject has been one of the most popular and…
We demonstrate that asymmetric reheating arises in a large ensemble of string compactifications with many axions and gauged dark sectors. This phenomenon may help avoid numerous cosmological problems that may arise if the sectors were…
If in addition to the standard model fields, a new pseudoscalar field that couples to hypercharge topological number density, the hypercharge axion, exists, it can be produced in colliders in association with photons or Z bosons, and…
The notion of global higher-form symmetries has received much attention, but leaves room for a more systematic mathematical formulation. In this article, we highlight the concept of higher automorphism bundles from the field of higher…
We analyze the conditions under which some supersymmetric generalizations of a class of models descending from string theory allow an axion in the physical spectrum, due to the presence of anomalous abelian gauge interactions. The gauge…
Generalized symmetries of quantum field theories can be characterized by topological defects/operators organized into a higher category. In this paper we consider the Axion-Maxwell field theory in four dimensions and, building on the…
Cosmological evolution of axionic strings is investigated by numerically solving field equations of a complex scalar field in 3+1 dimensions. It is shown that the global strings relax to the scaling solution with a significantly smaller…
It is well-known that if we gauge a $\mathbb{Z}_n$ symmetry in two dimensions, a dual $\mathbb{Z}_n$ symmetry appears, such that re-gauging this dual $\mathbb{Z}_n$ symmetry leads back to the original theory. We describe how this can be…
Dynamical mechanisms to generate an ultralight axion of mass $\sim 10^{-21}-10^{-22}$ eV in supergravity and strings are discussed. An ultralight particle of this mass provides a candidate for dark matter that may play a role for cosmology…
In this work we explore the effect of a non-Abelian dark sector gauge group that couples to the axion field. In particular, we analyze effects that arise if the dark sector gauge group mixes topologically with the Standard Model. This is…
Exploiting the gauge/gravity correspondence we find the spectrum of hadronic-like bound states of adjoint particles with a large global charge in several confining theories. In particular, we consider an embedding of four-dimensional N=1…
We demonstrate a universal mechanism of a class of instabilities in infrared regions for massless Abelian $p$-form gauge theories with topological interactions, which we call generalized chiral instabilities. Such instabilities occur in the…
Higher-form symmetries are associated with transformations that only act on extended objects, not on point particles. Typically, higher-form symmetries live alongside ordinary, point-particle (0-form), symmetries and they can be jointly…
We consider discrete gauge symmetries in D dimensions arising as remnants of broken continuous gauge symmetries carried by general antisymmetric tensor fields, rather than by standard 1-forms. The lagrangian for such a general ${\bf Z}_p$…
The QCD axion can successfully solve the strong CP problem under the condition that the Peccei-Quinn symmetry is respected to extremely high standard. We explore a class of gauge theories that accommodate a high-quality axion, known as the…
We examine six-dimensional quantum field theories through the lens of higher-form global symmetries. Every Yang-Mills gauge theory in six dimensions, with field strength $f^{(2)}$, naturally gives rise to a continuous 1-form global symmetry…