Related papers: Defect Charges, Gapped Boundary Conditions, and th…
We study properties of boundary conditions (BCs) in theories with categorical (or non-invertible) symmetries. We describe how the transformation properties, or (generalized) charges, of BCs are captured by topological BCs of Symmetry…
We propose the general idea that 't Hooft anomalies of generalized global symmetries can be understood in terms of the properties of solitonic defects, which generically are non-topological defects. The defining property of such defects is…
Consider a d-dimensional quantum field theory (QFT) $\mathfrak{T}$, with a generalized symmetry $\mathcal{S}$, which may or may not be invertible. We study the action of $\mathcal{S}$ on generalized or $q$-charges, i.e. $q$-dimensional…
Three-dimensional Yang-Mills-Chern-Simons theory has the peculiar property that its one-form symmetry defects have non-trivial braiding, namely they are charged under the same symmetry they generate, which is then anomalous. This poses a…
Geometric engineering is a collection of tools developed to establish dictionaries between local singularities in string theory and (supersymmetric) quantum fields. Extended operators and defects, as well as their higher quantum numbers…
The surface charges associated with $p$-form gauge fields in the Bondi patch of $D$-dimensional Minkowski spacetime are computed. We show that, under the Hodge duality between the field strengths of the dual formulations, electric-like…
Given any symmetry acting on a $d$-dimensional quantum field theory, there is an associated $(d+1)$-dimensional topological field theory known as the Symmetry TFT (SymTFT). The SymTFT is useful for decoupling the universal quantities of…
We use the Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) to systematically characterize gapped phases in 2+1 dimensions with categorical symmetries. The SymTFTs that we consider are (3+1)d Dijkgraaf-Witten (DW) theories for finite groups $G$,…
Quantum field theories can exhibit various generalized symmetry structures, among which higher-group symmetries and non-invertible symmetry defects are particularly prominent. In this work, we explore a new general scenario in which these…
$q$-charges describe the possible actions of a generalized symmetry on $q$-dimensional operators. In Part I of this series of papers, we describe $q$-charges for invertible symmetries; while the discussion of $q$-charges for non-invertible…
We investigate (-1)-form symmetries using the framework of symmetry topological field theories. Previous studies of (-1)-form symmetries have primarily focused on SymTFTs with topological point operators. Here we examine SymTFTs devoid of…
These are a set of lecture notes on generalized global symmetries in quantum field theory. The focus is on invertible symmetries with a few comments regarding non-invertible symmetries. The main topics covered are the basics of higher-form…
We study a relationship between conformally invariant boundary conditions and anomalies of conformal field theories (CFTs) in 1+1 dimensions. For a given CFT with a global symmetry, we consider symmetric gapping potentials which are…
We discuss a variety of codimension-one, non-invertible topological defects in general 3+1d QFTs with a discrete one-form global symmetry. These include condensation defects from higher gauging of the one-form symmetries on a…
A 2+1-dimensional topological quantum field theory (TQFT) may or may not admit topological (gapped) boundary conditions. A famous necessary, but not sufficient, condition for the existence of a topological boundary condition is that the…
We discuss the geometric origin of discrete higher form symmetries of quantum field theories in terms of defect groups from geometric engineering in M-theory. The flux non-commutativity in M-theory gives rise to (mixed) 't Hooft anomalies…
We consider two $d \geq 2$ conformal field theories (CFTs) glued together along a codimension one conformal interface. The conformal anomaly of such a system contains both bulk and interface contributions. In a curved-space setup, we…
We study $\mathbb{Z}_N$ one-form center symmetries in four-dimensional gauge theories using the symmetry topological field theory (SymTFT). In this context, the associated TFT in the five-dimensional bulk is the BF model. We revisit its…
In this work we study particular TQFTs in three dimensions, known as Symmetry Topological Field Theories (or SymTFTs), to identify line defects of two-dimensional CFTs arising from the compactification of 6d $(2,0)$ SCFTs on 4-manifolds…
Topological duality defects arise as codimension one generalized symmetry operators in quantum field theories (QFTs) with a duality symmetry. Recent investigations have shown that in the case of 4D $\mathcal{N} = 4$ Super Yang-Mills (SYM)…