arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J. -B. Zuber.
I review three different problems occuring in two dimensional field theory: 1) classification of conformal field theories; 2) construction of lattice integrable realizations of the latter; 3) solutions to the WDVV equations of topological field theories. I show that a structure of Coxeter group is hidden behind these three related problems.
Structure constants of minimal conformal theories are reconsidered. It is shown that {\it ratios} of structure constants of spin zero fields of a non-diagonal theory over the same evaluated in the diagonal theory are given by a simple expression in terms of the components of the eigenvectors of the adjacency matrix of the corresponding Dynkin diagram. This is proved by inspection, which leads us to carefully determine the {\it signs} of the structure constants that had not all appeared in the former works on the subject. We also present a proof relying on the consideration of lattice correlation functions and speculate on the extension of these identities to more complicated theories.
I show that the new topological field theories recently associated by Dubrovin with each Coxeter group may be all obtained in a simple way by a ``restriction'' of the standard ADE solutions. I then study the Chebichev specializations of these topological algebras, examine how the Coxeter graphs and matrices reappear in the dual algebra and mention the intriguing connection with the operator product algebra of conformal field theories. A direct understanding of the occurrence of Coxeter groups in that context is highly desirable.
After a short review of the algebraic setting of N=2 superconformal field theories, their chiral ring and their perturbations, I present some recent results on curious relations between the integrability of their perturbations and algebraic properties of their deformed chiral ring. (Lecture given at Hang-zhou, China, Sept 1993)
We show that the connection between certain integrable perturbations of $N=2$ superconformal theories and graphs found by Lerche and Warner extends to a broader class. These perturbations are such that the generators of the perturbed chiral ring may be diagonalized in an orthonormal basis. This allows to define a dual ring, whose generators are labelled by the ground states of the theory and are encoded in a graph or set of graphs, that reproduce the pattern of the ground states and interpolating solitons. All known perturbations of the $ADE$ potentials and some others are shown to satisfy this criterion. This suggests a test of integrability.
We reconsider the conjecture by Gepner that the fusion ring of a rational conformal field theory is isomorphic to a ring of polynomials in $n$ variables quotiented by an ideal of constraints that derive from a potential. We show that in a variety of cases, this is indeed true with {\it one-variable} polynomials.
We obtain in closed form averages of polynomials, taken over hermitian matrices with the Gaussian measure involved in the Kontsevich integral, and prove a conjecture of Witten enabling one to express analogous averages with the full (cubic potential) measure, as derivatives of the partition function with respect to traces of inverse odd powers of the external argument. The proofs are based on elementary algebraic identities involving a new set of invariant polynomials of the linear group, closely related to the general Schur functions.
Addendum to the paper Combinatorics of the Modular Group II The Kontsevich integrals, hep-th/9201001, by C. Itzykson and J.-B. Zuber (3 pages)
We study algebraic aspects of Kontsevich integrals as generating functions for intersection theory over moduli space and review the derivation of Virasoro and KdV constraints. 1. Intersection numbers 2. The Kontsevich integral 2.1. The main theorem 2.2 Expansion of Z on characters and Schur functions 2.3 Proof of the first part of the Theorem 3. From Grassmannians to KdV 4. Matrix Airy equation and Virasoro highest weight conditions 5. Genus expansion 6. Singular behaviour and Painlev'e equation. 7. Generalization to higher degree potentials