On the representation theory of the vertex algebra L−5/2(sl(4))

We study the representation theory of non-admissible simple affine vertex algebra [Formula: see text]. We determine an explicit formula for the singular vector of conformal weight four in the universal affine vertex algebra [Formula: see text], and show that it generates the maximal ideal in [Formula: see text]. We classify irreducible [Formula: see text]-modules in the category [Formula: see text], and determine the fusion rules between irreducible modules in the category of ordinary modules [Formula: see text]. It turns out that this fusion algebra is isomorphic to the fusion algebra of [Formula: see text]. We also prove that [Formula: see text] is a semi-simple, rigid braided tensor category. In our proofs, we use the notion of collapsing level for the affine [Formula: see text]-algebra, and the properties of conformal embedding [Formula: see text] at level [Formula: see text] from D. Adamovic et al. [Finite vs infinite decompositions in conformal embeddings, Comm. Math. Phys. 348 (2016) 445–473.]. We show that [Formula: see text] is a collapsing level with respect to the subregular nilpotent element [Formula: see text], meaning that the simple quotient of the affine [Formula: see text]-algebra [Formula: see text] is isomorphic to the Heisenberg vertex algebra [Formula: see text]. We prove certain results on vanishing and non-vanishing of cohomology for the quantum Hamiltonian reduction functor [Formula: see text]. It turns out that the properties of [Formula: see text] are more subtle than in the case of minimal reduction.

On local and integrated stress-tensor commutators

We discuss some general aspects of commutators of local operators in Lorentzian CFTs, which can be obtained from a suitable analytic continuation of the Euclidean operator product expansion (OPE). Commutators only make sense as distributions, and care has to be taken to extract the right distribution from the OPE. We provide explicit computations in two and four-dimensional CFTs, focusing mainly on commutators of components of the stress-tensor. We rederive several familiar results, such as the canonical commutation relations of free field theory, the local form of the Poincaré algebra, and the Virasoro algebra of two-dimensional CFT. We then consider commutators of light-ray operators built from the stress-tensor. Using simplifying features of the light sheet limit in four-dimensional CFT we provide a direct computation of the BMS algebra formed by a specific set of light-ray operators in theories with no light scalar conformal primaries. In four-dimensional CFT we define a new infinite set of light-ray operators constructed from the stress-tensor, which all have well-defined matrix elements. These are a direct generalization of the two-dimensional Virasoro light-ray operators that are obtained from a conformal embedding of Minkowski space in the Lorentzian cylinder. They obey Hermiticity conditions similar to their two-dimensional analogues, and also share the property that a semi-infinite subset annihilates the vacuum.

W algebras, cosets and VOAs for 4d $$ \mathcal{N} $$ = 2 SCFTs from M5 branes

We identify vertex operator algebras (VOAs) of a class of Argyres-Douglas (AD) matters with two types of non-abelian flavor symmetries. They are the W algebras defined using nilpotent orbit with partition [qm, 1s]. Gauging above AD matters, we can find VOAs for more general $$ \mathcal{N} $$ N = 2 SCFTs engineered from 6d (2, 0) theories. For example, the VOA for general (AN − 1, Ak − 1) theory is found as the coset of a collection of above W algebras. Various new interesting properties of 2d VOAs such as level-rank duality, conformal embedding, collapsing levels, coset constructions for known VOAs can be derived from 4d theory.

The Tutte Embedding of the Poisson–Voronoi Tessellation of the Brownian Disk Converges to $$\sqrt{8/3}$$-Liouville Quantum Gravity

Recent works have shown that an instance of a Brownian surface (such as the Brownian map or Brownian disk) a.s. has a canonical conformal structure under which it is equivalent to a $$\sqrt{8/3}$$8/3-Liouville quantum gravity (LQG) surface. In particular, Brownian motion on a Brownian surface is well-defined. The construction in these works is indirect, however, and leaves open a basic question: is Brownian motion on a Brownian surface the limit of simple random walk on increasingly fine discretizations of that surface, the way Brownian motion on $$\mathbb {R}^2$$R2 is the $$\epsilon \rightarrow 0$$ϵ→0 limit of simple random walk on $$\epsilon \mathbb {Z}^2$$ϵZ2? We answer this question affirmatively by showing that Brownian motion on a Brownian surface is (up to time change) the $$\lambda \rightarrow \infty $$λ→∞ limit of simple random walk on the Voronoi tessellation induced by a Poisson point process whose intensity is $$\lambda $$λ times the associated area measure. Among other things, this implies that as $$\lambda \rightarrow \infty $$λ→∞ the Tutte embedding (a.k.a. harmonic embedding) of the discretized Brownian disk converges to the canonical conformal embedding of the continuum Brownian disk, which in turn corresponds to $$\sqrt{8/3}$$8/3-LQG. Along the way, we obtain other independently interesting facts about conformal embeddings of Brownian surfaces, including information about the Euclidean shapes of embedded metric balls and Voronoi cells. For example, we derive moment estimates that imply, in a certain precise sense, that these shapes are unlikely to be very long and thin.