Nordita HEP Local Seminars

Modularity, and its consequences, in certain non-supersymmetric four-dimensional gauge theories

by David McGady (NBIA)

Europe/Stockholm
132:028

132:028

Description
In this talk, I will discuss recently discovered emergent symmetries within a calculable limit of four-dimensional gauge theories. The particular limit is that of large N gauge theories, with arbitrary numbers of massless adjoint fermions and scalars, placed on the compact manifold S3 x S1, at weak-coupling. In this limit, we show that the grand canonical partition functions have well-defined modular weight. Modularity, easily and powerfully implies (a) these theories behave like two-dimensional (irrational) conformal field theories, (b) very general sum-rules for vacuum energies, and (c) a level-matching between bosons and fermions, manifestly distinct from supersymmetry. Whether these symmetries are evocative of integrability is not yet clear. Time permitting, I will discuss moving away from this simplest limit. [Note: Theory Working Group 30+30 minute format]