arXiv subjects

Abhay Shrestha

Publications and source records attributed to Abhay Shrestha.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

A Nonlocal Schwinger Model

We solve a system of massless fermions constrained to two space-time dimensions interacting via a $d$ space-time dimensional Maxwell field. Through dimensional reduction to the defect and bosonization, the system maps to a massless scalar interacting with a nonlocal Maxwell field through a $F ϕ$-coupling. The $d=2$ dimensional case is the usual Schwinger model where the photon gets a mass. More generally, in $2<d<4$ dimensions, the degrees of freedom map to a scalar which undergoes a renormalization group flow; in the ultraviolet, the scalar is free, while in the infrared it has scaling dimension $(4-d)/2$. The infrared is similar to the Wilson-Fisher fixed point, and the physically relevant case $d=4$ becomes infrared trivial in the limit of infinite ultraviolet cut-off, consistent with earlier work on the triviality of conformal surface defects in Maxwell theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2022

Conformal Surface Defects in Maxwell Theory are Trivial

We consider a free Maxwell field in four dimensions in the presence of a codimension two defect. Reflection positive, codimension two defects which preserve conformal symmetry in this context are very limited. We show only generalized free fields can appear in the defect operator product expansion of the bulk Maxwell field; in particular correlation functions of these defect operators can be evaluated via Wick's Theorem.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

Two Point Functions in Defect CFTs

This paper is designed to be a practical tool for constructing and investigating two-point correlation functions in defect conformal field theory, directly in physical space, between any two bulk primaries or between a bulk primary and a defect primary, with arbitrary spin. Although geometrically elegant and ultimately a more powerful approach, the embedding space formalism gets rather cumbersome when dealing with mixed symmetry tensors, especially in the projection to physical space. The results in this paper provide an alternative method for studying two-point correlation functions for a generic $d$-dimensional conformal field theory with a flat $p$-dimensional defect and $d-p=q$ co-dimensions. We tabulate some examples of correlation functions involving a conserved current, an energy momentum tensor and a Maxwell field strength, while analysing the constraints arising from conservation and the equations of motion. A method for obtaining bulk-to-defect correlators is also explained. Some explicit examples are considered: free scalar theory on $\mathbb{R}^p \times ({\mathbb R}^q / {\mathbb Z}_2)$ and a free four dimensional Maxwell theory on a wedge.

hep-th↗