We study generalized symmetries of quantum field theories in 1+1D generated by topological defect lines with no inverse. This paper follows our companion paper on gapped phases and anomalies associated with these symmetries. In the present work we focus on identifying fusion category symmetries, using both specialized 1+1D methods such as the modular bootstrap and (rational) conformal field theory (CFT), as well as general methods based on gauging finite symmetries, that extend to all dimensions. We apply these methods to
c=1 CFTs and uncover a rich structure. We find that even those
c=1 CFTs with only finite group-like symmetries can have continuous fusion category symmetries, and prove a Noether theorem that relates such symmetries in general to non-local conserved currents. We also use these symmetries to derive new constraints on RG flows between 1+1D CFTs.
A bstract We study generalized symmetries of quantum field theories in 1+1D generated by topological defect lines with no inverse. This paper follows our companion paper on gapped phases and anomalies associated with these symmetries. In the present work we focus on identifying fusion category symmetries, using both specialized 1+1D methods such as the modular bootstrap and (rational) conformal field theory (CFT), as well as general methods based on gauging finite symmetries, that extend to all dimensions. We apply these methods to c = 1 CFTs and uncover a rich structure. We find that even those c = 1 CFTs with only finite group-like symmetries can have continuous fusion category symmetries, and prove a Noether theorem that relates such symmetries in general to non-local conserved currents. We also use these symmetries to derive new constraints on RG flows between 1+1D CFTs.
We present a general approach for detecting when a fusion category symmetry is anomalous, based on the existence of a special kind of Lagrangian algebra of the corresponding Drinfeld center. The Drinfeld center of a fusion category
A describes a
(2+1)D topological order whose gapped boundaries enumerate all
(1+1)D gapped phases with the fusion category symmetry, which may be spontaneously broken. There always exists a gapped boundary, given by the \emph{electric} Lagrangian algebra, that describes a phase with
A fully spontaneously broken. The symmetry defects of this boundary can be identified with the objects in
A. We observe that if there exists a different gapped boundary, given by a \emph{magnetic} Lagrangian algebra, then there exists a gapped phase where
A is not spontaneously broken at all, which means that
A is not anomalous. In certain cases, we show that requiring the existence of such a magnetic Lagrangian algebra leads to highly computable obstructions to
A being anomaly-free. As an application, we consider the Drinfeld centers of
ZN×ZN Tambara-Yamagami fusion categories and recover known results from the study of fiber functors.
Gapped phases in 2+1 dimensional quantum field theories with fusion 2-categorical symmetries were recently classified and characterized using the Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) approach [L. Bhardwaj et al., SciPost Phys. 19, 056 (2025); L. Bhardwaj et al., arXiv: 2502.20440]. In this paper, we provide a systematic lattice model construction for all such gapped phases. Specifically, we consider “all-boson type” fusion 2-category symmetries, all of which are obtainable from 0-form symmetry groups G G (possibly with an ’t Hooft anomaly) via generalized gauging—that is, by stacking with an H H -symmetric TFT and gauging a subgroup H H . The continuum classification directly informs the lattice data, such as the generalized gauging that determines the symmetry category, and the data that specifies the gapped phase. We construct commuting projector Hamiltonians and ground states applicable to any non-chiral gapped phase with such symmetries. We also describe the ground states in terms of tensor networks. In light of the length of the paper, we include a self-contained summary section presenting the main results and examples.
We present a general approach for detecting when a fusion category symmetry is anomalous, based on the existence of a special kind of Lagrangian algebra of the corresponding Drinfeld center. The Drinfeld center of a fusion category
A describes a
(2+1)-dimensional topological order whose gapped boundaries enumerate all
(1+1)-dimensional gapped phases with the fusion category symmetry, which may be spontaneously broken. There always exists a gapped boundary, given by the electric Lagrangian algebra, that describes a phase with
A fully spontaneously broken. The symmetry defects of this boundary can be identified with the objects in
A. We observe that if there exists a different gapped boundary, given by a magnetic Lagrangian algebra, then there exists a gapped phase where
A is not spontaneously broken at all, which means that
A is not anomalous. In certain cases, we show that requiring the existence of such a magnetic Lagrangian algebra leads to highly computable obstructions to
A being anomaly free. As an application, we consider the Drinfeld centers of ${\mathbb{Z}}_{N}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{\mathbb{Z}}_{N}$ Tambara-Yamagami fusion categories and recover known results from the study of fiber functors.
The Kramers-Wannier transformation of the 1+1d transverse-field Ising model exchanges the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases and, at criticality, manifests as a non-invertible symmetry. Extending such self-duality symmetries beyond gauging of abelian groups in tensor-product Hilbert spaces has, however, remained challenging. In this work, we construct a generalized 1+1d Ising model based on a finite-dimensional semisimple Hopf algebra
H that enjoys an anomaly-free non-invertible symmetry
Rep(H). We provide an intuitive diagrammatic formulation of both the Hamiltonian and the symmetry operators using a non-(co)commutative generalization of ZX-calculus built from Hopf-algebraic data. When
H is self-dual, we further construct a generalized Kramers-Wannier duality operator that exchanges the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases and becomes a non-invertible symmetry at the self-dual point. This enlarged symmetry mixes with lattice translation and, in the infrared, flows to a weakly integral fusion category given by a
Z2 extension of
Rep(H). Specializing to the Kac-Paljutkin algebra
H8, the smallest self-dual Hopf algebra beyond abelian group algebras, we numerically study the phase diagram and identify four of the six
Rep(H8)-symmetric gapped phases, separated by Ising critical lines and meeting at a multicritical point. We also realize all six
Rep(H8)-symmetric gapped phases on the lattice via the
H-comodule algebra formalism, in agreement with the module-category classification of
Rep(H8). Our results provide a unified Hopf-algebraic framework for non-invertible symmetries, dualities, and the tensor product lattice models that realize them.