All-loop group-theory constraints for four-point amplitudes of SU($N$), SO($N$), and Sp($N$) gauge theories

Abstract

In the decomposition of gauge-theory amplitudes into kinematic and color factors, the color factors (at a given loop order $L$) span a proper subspace of the extended trace space (which consists of single and multiple traces of generators of the gauge group, graded by powers of $N$). Using an iterative process, we systematically construct the $L$-loop color space of four-point amplitudes of fields in the adjoint representation of SU($N$), SO($N$), or Sp($N$). We define the null space as the orthogonal complement of the color space. For SU($N$), we confirm the existence of four independent null vectors (for $L \ge 2$) and for SO($N$) and Sp($N$), we establish the existence of seventeen independent null vectors (for $L \ge 5$). Each null vector corresponds to a group-theory constraint on the color-ordered amplitudes of the gauge theory.