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Yi-Zhi Huang

Publications and source records attributed to Yi-Zhi Huang.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Differential equations, duality and modular invariance

We solve the problem of constructing all chiral genus-one correlation functions from chiral genus-zero correlation functions associated to a vertex operator algebra satisfying the following conditions: (i) the weight of any nonzero homogeneous elements of V is nonnegative and the weight zero subspace is one-dimensional, (ii) every N-gradable weak V-module is completely reducible and (iii) V is C_2-cofinite. We establish the fundamental properties of these functions, including suitably formulated commutativity, associativity and modular invariance. The method we develop and use here is completely different from the one previously used by Zhu and other people. In particular, we show that the $q$-traces of products of certain geometrically-modified intertwining operators satisfy modular invariant systems of differential equations which, for any fixed modular parameter, reduce to doubly-periodic systems with only regular singular points. Together with the results obtained by the author in the genus-zero case, the results of the present paper solves essentially the problem of constructing chiral genus-one weakly conformal field theories from the representations of a vertex operator algebra satisfying the conditions above.

math.QA↗

Open-string vertex algebras, tensor categories and operads

We introduce notions of open-string vertex algebra, conformal open-string vertex algebra and variants of these notions. These are ``open-string-theoretic,'' ``noncommutative'' generalizations of the notions of vertex algebra and of conformal vertex algebra. Given an open-string vertex algebra, we show that there exists a vertex algebra, which we call the ``meromorphic center,'' inside the original algebra such that the original algebra yields a module and also an intertwining operator for the meromorphic center. This result gives us a general method for constructing open-string vertex algebras. Besides obvious examples obtained from associative algebras and vertex (super)algebras, we give a nontrivial example constructed from the minimal model of central charge c=1/2. We establish an equivalence between the associative algebras in the braided tensor category of modules for a suitable vertex operator algebra and the grading-restricted conformal open-string vertex algebras containing a vertex operator algebra isomorphic to the given vertex operator algebra. We also give a geometric and operadic formulation of the notion of grading-restricted conformal open-string vertex algebra, we prove two isomorphism theorems, and in particular, we show that such an algebra gives a projective algebra over what we call the ``Swiss-cheese partial operad.''

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Riemann surfaces with boundaries and the theory of vertex operator algebras

The connection between Riemann surfaces with boundaries and the theory of vertex operator algebras is discussed in the framework of conformal field theories defined by Kontsevich and Segal and in the framework of their generalizations in open string theory and boundary conformal field theory. We present some results, problems, conjectures, their conceptual implications and meanings in a program to construct these theories from representations of vertex operator algebras.

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Conformal-field-theoretic analogues of codes and lattices

We introduce and study completely-extendable conformal intertwining algebras. Based on results obtained in other papers, various examples are given. Duals of these algebras are constructed and nondegenerate such algebras are defined. We prove that the double dual of such a nondegenrate algebra is equal to itself. We explain using a table that these nondegenerate algebras are the correct conformal-field-theoretic analogues of linear binary codes and nondegenerate rational lattices.

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A functional-analytic theory of vertex (operator) algebras, II

For a finitely-generated vertex operator algebra of central charge c, a locally convex topological completion is constructed. We construct on the completion a structure of an algebra over the operad of the c/2-th power of the determinant line bundle over the moduli space of genus-zero Riemann surfaces with ordered analytically parametrized boundary components. In particular, the completion is a module for the semi-group of the c/2-th power of the determinant line bundle over the moduli space of conformal equivalence classes of annuli with analytically parametrized boundary components. The results in Part I for Z-graded vertex algebras are also reformulated in terms of the framed little disk operad. Using May's recognition principle for double loop spaces, one immediate consequence of such operadic formulations is that the compactly generated spaces corresponding to (or the k-ifications of) the locally convex completions constructed in Part I and in the present paper have the weak homotopy types of double loop spaces. We also generalize the results above to locally-grading-restricted conformal vertex algebras and to modules.

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Generalized Rationality and a "Jacobi Identity" for Intertwining Operator Algebras

We prove a generalized rationality property and a new identity that we call the ``Jacobi identity'' for intertwining operator algebras. Most of the main properties of genus-zero conformal field theories, including the main properties of vertex operator algebras, modules, intertwining operators, Verlinde algebras, and fusing and braiding matrices, are incorporated into this identity. Together with associativity and commutativity for intertwining operators proved by the author in \cite{H2} and \cite{H3}, the results of the present paper solve completely the problem of finding a natural purely algebraic structure on the direct sum of all inequivalent irreducible modules for a suitable vertex operator algebra. Two equivalent definitions of intertwining operator algebra in terms of this Jacobi identity are given.

q-alg↗

Factorization of formal exponentials and uniformization

Let $\mathfrak{g}$ be a Lie algebra in characteristic zero equipped with a vector space decomposition $\mathfrak{g}=\mathfrak{g}^-\oplus \mathfrak{g}^+$, and let $s$ and $t$ be commuting formal variables. We prove that the Campbell-Baker-Hausdorff map $C:s\mathfrak{g}^- [[s,t]]\times t\mathfrak{g}^+[[s,t]]\to s\mathfrak{g}^-[[s,t]]\oplus t\mathfrak{g}^+[[s,t]]$ given by $e^{sg^-}e^{tg^+}=e^{C(sg^-,tg^+)}$ for $g^\pm\in\mathfrak{g}^\pm[[s,t]]$ is a bijection, as is well known when $\mathfrak{g}$ is finite-dimensional over $\mathbb{R}$ or $\mathbb{C}$, by geometry. It follows that there exist unique $Ψ^\pm\in\mathfrak{g}^\pm[[s,t]]$ such that $e^{tg^+}e^{sg^-}= e^{sΨ^-}e^{tΨ^+}$ (also well known in the finite-dimensional geometric setting). We apply this to $\mathfrak{g}$ consisting of certain formal infinite series with coefficients in a Lie algebra $\mathfrak{p}$. For $\mathfrak{p}$ the Virasoro algebra (resp., a Grassmann envelope of the Neveu-Schwarz superalgebra), the result was first proved by Huang (resp., Barron) as a step in the construction of a (super)geometric formulation of the notion of vertex operator (super)algebra. For the Virasoro (resp., N=1 Neveu-Schwarz) algebra with zero central charge the result gives the precise expansion of the uniformizing function for a sphere (resp., supersphere) with tubes resulting from the sewing of two spheres (resp., superspheres) with tubes in two-dimensional genus-zero holomorphic conformal (resp., N = 1 superconformal) field theory. The general result places such uniformization problems into a broad formal algebraic context.

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Semi-infinite forms and topological vertex operator algebras

Semi-infinite forms on the moduli spaces of genus-zero Riemann surfaces with punctures and local coordinates are introduced. A partial operad for semi-infinite forms is constructed. Using semi-infinite forms and motivated by a partial suboperad of the partial operad for semi-infinite forms, topological vertex partial operads of type $k<0$ and strong topological vertex partial operads of type $k<0$ are constructed. It is proved that the category of (locally-)grading-restricted (strong) topological vertex operator algebras of type $k<0$ and the category of (weakly) meromorphic ${\Bbb Z}\times {\Bbb Z}$-graded algebras over the (strong) topological vertex partial operad of type k are isomorphic. As an application of this isomorphism theorem, the following conjecture of Lian-Zuckerman and Kimura-Voronov-Zuckerman is proved: A strong topological vertex operator algebra gives a homotopy Gerstenhaber algebra. These results hold in particular for the tensor product of the moonshine module vertex operator algebra, the vertex algebra constructed {from} a rank 2 Lorentz lattice and the ghost vertex operator algebra, studied in detail first by Lian and Zuckerman.

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Intertwining operator algebras and vertex tensor categories for affine Lie algebras

We apply the general theory of tensor products of modules for a vertex operator algebra developed in our papers hep-th/9309076, hep-th/9309159, hep-th/9401119, q-alg/9505018, q-alg/9505019 and q-alg/9505020 to the case of the Wess-Zumino-Novikov-Witten models and related models in conformal field theory. We show that for the category of modules for a vertex operator algebra containing a subalgebra isomorphic to a tensor product of rational vertex operator algebras associated to affine Lie algebras, the intertwining operators among the modules have the associativity property, the category has a natural structure of vertex tensor category, and a number of related results hold. We obtain, as a corollary and special case, a construction of the previously-studied braided tensor category structure on the category of finite direct sums of standard (integrable highest weight) modules of a fixed positive integral level for an affine Lie algebra.

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A functional-analytic theory of vertex (operator) algebras, I

This paper is the first in a series of papers developing a functional-analytic theory of vertex (operator) algebras and their representations. For an arbitrary Z-graded finitely-generated vertex algebra (V, Y, 1) satisfying the standard grading-restriction axioms, a locally convex topological completion H of V is constructed. By the geometric interpretation of vertex (operator) algebras, there is a canonical linear map from the tensor product of V and V to the algebraic completion of V realizing linearly the conformal equivalence class of a genus-zero Riemann surface with analytically parametrized boundary obtained by deleting two ordered disjoint disks from the unit disk and by giving the obvious parametrizations to the boundary components. We extend such a linear map to a linear map from the completed tensor product of H and H to H, and prove the continuity of the extension. For any finitely-generated C-graded V-module (W, Y_W) satisfying the standard grading-restriction axioms, the same method also gives a topological completion H^W of W and gives the continuous extensions from the completed tensor product of H and H^W to H^W of the linear maps from the tensor product of V and W to the algenbraic completion of W realizing linearly the above conformal equivalence classes of the genus-zero Riemann surfaces with analytically parametrized boundaries.

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Genus-zero modular functors and intertwining operator algebras

In [H5] (q-alg/9512024) and [H7] (q-alg/9704008), the author introduced the notion of intertwining operator algebra, a nonmeromorphic generalization of the notion of vertex operator algebra involving monodromies. The problem of constructing intertwining operator algebras from representations of suitable vertex operator algebras were solved implicitly earlier in [H3] (q-alg/9505019). In the present paper, we generalize the geometric and operadic formulation of the notion of vertex operator algebra given in [H1], [H2], [HL1] (hep-th/9301009), [HL2] and [H6] to the notion of intertwining operator algebra. We show that the category of intertwining operator algebras of central charge c is isomorphic to the category of algebras over rational genus-zero modular functors (certain analytic partial operads) of central charge c satisfying certain generalized meromorphicity. This result is one main step in the construction of genus-zero conformal field theories from representations of vertex operator algebras announced in [H5] (q-alg/9512024). One byproduct of the proof of the present isomorphism theorem is a geometric construction of (framed) braid group representations from intertwining operator algebras and thus from representations of suitable vertex operator algebras.

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On the D-module and formal-variable approaches to vertex algebras

In a program to formulate and develop two-dimensional conformal field theory in the framework of algebraic geometry, Beilinson and Drinfeld have recently given a notion of ``chiral algebra'' in terms of D-modules on algebraic curves. This definition consists of a ``skew-symmetry'' relation and a ``Jacobi identity'' relation in a categorical setting. In this paper, we show directly that these chiral algebras are essentially the same as vertex algebras without vacuum vector (and without grading), by establishing an equivalence between the skew-symmetry and Jacobi identity relations of Beilinson-Drinfeld and the (similarly-named, but different) skew-symmetry and Jacobi identity relations in the formal-variable approach to vertex operator algebra theory as formulated by Borcherds, Frenkel-Lepowsky-Meurman and Frenkel-Huang-Lepowsky.

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Intertwining Operator Algebras, Genus-Zero Modular Functors and Genus-Zero Conformal Field Theories

We describe the construction of the genus-zero parts of conformal field theories in the sense of G. Segal from representations of vertex operator algebras satisfying certain conditions. The construction is divided into four steps and each step gives a mathematical structure of independent interest. These mathematical structures are intertwining operator algebras, genus-zero modular functors, genus-zero holomorphic weakly conformal field theories, and genus-zero conformal field theories.

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A nonmeromorphic extension of the moonshine module vertex operator algebra

We describe a natural structure of an abelian intertwining algebra (in the sense of Dong and Lepowsky) on the direct sum of the untwisted vertex operator algebra constructed {}from the Leech lattice and its (unique) irreducible twisted module. When restricting ourselves to the moonshine module, we obtain a new and conceptual proof that the moonshine module has a natural structure of a vertex operator algebra. This abelian intertwining algebra also contains an irreducible twisted module for the moonshine module with respect to the obvious involution. In addition, it contains a vertex operator superalgebra and a twisted module for this vertex operator superalgebra with respect to the involution which is the identity on the even subspace and is $-1$ on the odd subspace. It also gives the superconformal structures observed by Dixon, Ginsparg and Harvey.

hep-th↗

A theory of tensor products for module categories for a vertex operator algebra, III

This is the third part in a series of papers developing a tensor product theory for modules for a vertex operator algebra. The goal of this theory is to construct a ``vertex tensor category'' structure on the category of modules for a suitable vertex operator algebra. The notion of vertex tensor category is essentially a ``complex analogue'' of the notion of symmetric tensor category, and in fact a vertex tensor category produces a braided tensor category in a natural way. In this paper, we focus on a particular element $P(z)$ of a certain moduli space of three-punctured Riemann spheres; in general, every element of this moduli space will give rise to a notion of tensor product, and one must consider all these notions in order to construct a vertex tensor category. Here we present the fundamental properties of the $P(z)$-tensor product of two modules for a vertex operator algebra. We give two constructions of a $P(z)$-tensor product, using the results, established in Parts I and II of this series, for a certain other element of the moduli space. The definitions and results in Part I (hep-th/9309076, which has been replaced by a new version with a greatly expanded introduction and updated references) and Part II (hep-th/9309159) are recalled.

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