Next kick-off: 15.10.25
The seminars at IHES will take place on the following Wednesdays: 12.11, 26.11 and 10.12. More information soon, stay tuned!
Theoretical Physics
Spontaneous symmetry breaking on surface defects
byGabriel Cuomo
Abstract:Coleman’s theorem states that continuous internal symmetries cannot be spontaneously broken in two-dimensional quantum field theories (QFTs). I will discuss under which conditions a similar result holds for two-dimensional defects in CFTs invariant under a continuous symmetry group. I will argue that spontaneous symmetry breaking is only possible for exotic RG flows, that do not terminate at a fixed point. I will present examples and describe a generic defect universality class, formerly found by Metlitski for boundaries in the O(N) model, where correlation functions decay logarithmically at large distances.