Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories

Given a two-dimensional quantum lattice model with an Abelian gauge theory interpretation, we investigate a duality operation that amounts to gauging its invertible 1-form symmetry, followed by gauging the resulting 0-form symmetry in a twisted way via a choice of discrete torsion. Using tensor netw...

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Main Author: Bram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement Delcamp
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SciPost 2025-08-01
Series:SciPost Physics
Online Access:https://scipost.org/SciPostPhys.19.2.054
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author Bram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement Delcamp
author_facet Bram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement Delcamp
author_sort Bram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement Delcamp
collection DOAJ
description Given a two-dimensional quantum lattice model with an Abelian gauge theory interpretation, we investigate a duality operation that amounts to gauging its invertible 1-form symmetry, followed by gauging the resulting 0-form symmetry in a twisted way via a choice of discrete torsion. Using tensor networks, we introduce explicit lattice realisations of the so-called condensation defects, which are obtained by gauging the 1-form symmetry along submanifolds of spacetime, and employ the same calculus to realise the duality operators. By leveraging these tensor network operators, we compute the non-trivial interplay between symmetry-twisted boundary conditions and charge sectors under the duality operation, enabling us to construct isometries relating the dual Hamiltonians. Whenever a lattice gauge theory is left invariant under the duality operation, we explore the possibility of promoting the self-duality to an internal symmetry. We argue that this results in a symmetry structure that encodes the 2-representations of a 2-group.
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spelling doaj-art-80cbb76e00f64b51807a40d65551ccc02025-08-22T13:43:14ZengSciPostSciPost Physics2542-46532025-08-0119205410.21468/SciPostPhys.19.2.054Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theoriesBram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement DelcampGiven a two-dimensional quantum lattice model with an Abelian gauge theory interpretation, we investigate a duality operation that amounts to gauging its invertible 1-form symmetry, followed by gauging the resulting 0-form symmetry in a twisted way via a choice of discrete torsion. Using tensor networks, we introduce explicit lattice realisations of the so-called condensation defects, which are obtained by gauging the 1-form symmetry along submanifolds of spacetime, and employ the same calculus to realise the duality operators. By leveraging these tensor network operators, we compute the non-trivial interplay between symmetry-twisted boundary conditions and charge sectors under the duality operation, enabling us to construct isometries relating the dual Hamiltonians. Whenever a lattice gauge theory is left invariant under the duality operation, we explore the possibility of promoting the self-duality to an internal symmetry. We argue that this results in a symmetry structure that encodes the 2-representations of a 2-group.https://scipost.org/SciPostPhys.19.2.054
spellingShingle Bram Vancraeynest-De Cuiper, Clement Delcamp
Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
SciPost Physics
title Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
title_full Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
title_fullStr Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
title_full_unstemmed Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
title_short Twisted gauging and topological sectors in (2+1)d Abelian lattice gauge theories
title_sort twisted gauging and topological sectors in 2 1 d abelian lattice gauge theories
url https://scipost.org/SciPostPhys.19.2.054
work_keys_str_mv AT bramvancraeynestdecuiperclementdelcamp twistedgaugingandtopologicalsectorsin21dabelianlatticegaugetheories