Related papers: Gauge Defects
We discuss invertible and non-invertible topological condensation defects arising from gauging a discrete higher-form symmetry on a higher codimensional manifold in spacetime, which we define as higher gauging. A $q$-form symmetry is called…
We analyze how gauge fixing, which is required by any practical continuum approach to gauge systems, can interfere with the physical symmetries of such systems. In principle, the gauge fixing procedure, which deals with the (unphysical)…
Reparametrization invariance being treated as a gauge symmetry shows some specific peculiarities. We study these peculiarities both from a general point of view and on concrete examples. We consider the canonical treatment of…
Employing an arbitrary velocity gauge transformation this contribution argues that the breaking of time symmetry is a natural consequence of irreversibility.
In this paper we outline the application of decomposition to condensation defects and their fusion rules. Briefly, a condensation defect is obtained by gauging a higher-form symmetry along a submanifold, and so there is a natural interplay…
We generalize the notion of an anomaly for a symmetry to a noninvertible symmetry enacted by surface operators using the framework of condensation in 2-categories. Given a multifusion 2-category, potentially with some additional levels of…
Symmetry, in particular gauge symmetry, is a fundamental principle in theoretical physics. It is intimately connected to the geometry of fibre bundles. A refinement to the gauge principle, known as ``spontaneous symmetry breaking'', leads…
One of the central concepts in modern theoretical physics, gauge symmetry, is typically realised by lifting a finite-dimensional global symmetry group of a given functional to an infinite-dimensional local one by extending the functional to…
Gauge symmetries are often highlighted as a fundamental cornerstone of modern physics. But at the same time, it is commonly emphasized that gauge symmetries are not a fundamental feature of nature but merely redundancies in our description.…
The concept of (global) gauge symmetry breaking plays an important role in many areas of physics. Since the corresponding symmetry is a gauge symmetry, its breaking is actually gauge-dependent. Thus, it is possible to design gauges which…
We propose a new point of view to gauge theories based on taking the action of symmetry transformations directly on the coordinates of space. Via this approach the gauge fields are not introduced at the first step, and they can be…
The gauge symmetry is said unfree if the gauge transformation leaves the action functional unchanged provided for the gauge parameters are constrained by the system of partial differential equations. The best known example of this…
Gauge symmetries emerge from a redundant description of the effective action for light degrees of freedom after the decoupling of heavy modes. This redundant description avoids the use of explicit constraints in configuration space. For…
We construct a class of non-invertible duality defects, in (2+1)d quantum field theories, arising from half-spacetime gauging of a 2-group symmetry. Starting from a parent theory with two discrete and Abelian 0-form symmetries and a…
We analyse symmetry breaking in general gauge theories paying particular attention to the underlying geometry of the theory. In this context we find two natural metrics upon the vacuum manifold: a Euclidean metric associated with the scalar…
By applying properly the concept of twist symmetry to the gauge invariant theories, we arrive at the conclusion that previously proposed in the literature noncommutative gauge theories, with the use of $\star$-product, are the correct ones,…
The concepts of symmetry, symmetry breaking and gauge symmetries are discussed, their operational meaning being displayed by the observables {\em and} the (physical) states. For infinitely extended systems the states fall into physically…
Gauge fixing and the observable fields for both abelian and non-abelian gauge theories with spontaneous breaking of gauge symmetry are studied. We explicitly show that it is possible to globally fix the gauge in the broken sector and hence…
The gauge symmetry is one of the most important concepts in modern physics, but there are two conflicting views on its meaning or interpretation. The standard view is that local gauge symmetry is the basis of the pursue of fundamental…
We study in general spacetime dimension the symmetry of the theory obtained by gauging a non-anomalous finite normal Abelian subgroup $A$ of a $\Gamma$-symmetric theory. Depending on how anomalous $\Gamma$ is, we find that the symmetry of…