Reduction and inverse-reduction functors I: standard $\mathsf{V^k}(\mathfrak{sl}_2)$-modules

Abstract

Quantum hamiltonian reduction is a fundamental tool of conformal field theory and vertex algebra representation theory. It has traditionally been applied to study highest-weight modules. On the other hand, inverse quantum hamiltonian reduction lends itself to the study of fully relaxed highest-weight modules and their spectral flows, sometimes called the standard modules. This is the first of several papers that study the composition of reduction and inverse-reduction functors. A general formalism is presented and exemplified with the simplest example, thereby computing the action of reduction on the standard modules of the affine vertex-operator algebra associated with $\mathfrak{sl}_2$. The appearence of unbounded spectral sequences in this formalism may be of independent interest.