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arXiv:2408.13132 · Journal of High Energy Physics

S-matrix bootstrap and non-invertible symmetries

Christian Copetti, Lucía Córdova, Shota Komatsu

Published Mar 28, 2025• 20 citations
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Abstract

A bstract We initiate the S-matrix bootstrap analysis of theories with non-invertible symmetries in (1+1) dimensions. Our previous work [1] showed that crossing symmetry of S-matrices in such theories is modified, with modification characterized by the fusion category data. By imposing unitarity, symmetry and the modified crossing, we constrain the space of consistent S-matrices, identifying integrable theories with non-invertible symmetries at the cusps of allowed regions. We also extend the modified crossing rules to cases where vacua transform in non-regular representations of fusion category, utilizing a connection to a dual category $$ {\mathcal{C}}_{\mathcal{M}}^{\ast } $$ C M ∗ and Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT). This highlights the utility of SymTFT in the analysis of scattering amplitudes.

DOI
10.1007/jhep03(2025)204

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•Jul 1, 2026•1 citation
A bstract We initiate the S-matrix bootstrap analysis of theories with non-invertible symmetries in (1+1) dimensions. Our previous work [1] showed that crossing symmetry of S-matrices in such theories is modified, with modification characterized by the fusion category data. By imposing unitarity, symmetry and the modified crossing, we constrain the space of consistent S-matrices, identifying integrable theories with non-invertible symmetries at the cusps of allowed regions. We also extend the modified crossing rules to cases where vacua transform in non-regular representations of fusion category, utilizing a connection to a dual category CM∗{\mathcal{C}}_{\mathcal{M}}^{\ast }CM∗​ C M ∗ and Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT). This highlights the utility of SymTFT in the analysis of scattering amplitudes.
We show that crossing symmetry of S matrices is modified in certain theories with noninvertible symmetries or anomalies. Focusing on integrable flows to gapped phases in two dimensions, we find that S matrices derived previously from the bootstrap approach are incompatible with noninvertible symmetries along the flow. We present consistent alternatives, which, however, violate standard crossing symmetry and obey modified rules dictated by fusion categories. We extend these rules to theories with discrete anomalies.
A bstract Recent studies by Copetti, Córdova and Komatsu have revealed that when non-invertible symmetries are spontaneously broken, the conventional crossing relation of the S-matrix is modified by the effects of the corresponding topological quantum field theory (TQFT). In this paper, we extend these considerations to (1 + 1)-dimensional quantum field theories (QFTs) with boundaries. In the presence of a boundary, one can define not only the bulk S-matrix but also the boundary S-matrix, which is subject to a consistency condition known as the boundary crossing relation. We show that when the boundary is weakly-symmetric under the non-invertible symmetry, the conventional boundary crossing relation also receives a modification due to the TQFT effects. As a concrete example of the boundary scattering, we analyze kink scattering in the gapped theory obtained from the Φ (1,3) -deformation of a minimal model. We explicitly construct the boundary S-matrix that satisfies the Ward-Takahashi identities associated with non-invertible symmetries.
A bstract There might exist non-rational Virasoro CFTs in two dimensions with a (Fib ⊠ Fib)⋊ S 2 categorical symmetry. We calculate the necessary ingredients for a modular conformal bootstrap analysis of these theories. After reviewing the basics of fusion categories, we present the irreducible representations, the lasso maps that intertwine between different Hilbert spaces, and finally the 22-by-22 modular S matrix. We highlight the peculiarities introduced by the non-invertible nature of the symmetry. This paper is written in a pedagogical manner and can therefore serve as an accessible entry point into the literature.
A bstract We investigate symmetry topological field theories (SymTFTs) of non-abelian and non-invertible symmetries and the different Lagrangian algebras associated with a given Drinfeld center. For several examples we analyze the condensable algebras of the Drinfeld center to identify the intrinsically gapless symmetry protected topological (igSPT) phases. In the previous work, the relation between igSPT phases and resolving anomalies by embedding an anomalous symmetry inside a larger fusion category was demonstrated. Here we present more examples of this mechanism that involve both group-like and categorical symmetries.
The S-matrix bootstrap is extended to a 1+1d theory with O(N) symmetry and a boundary in what we call the R-matrix bootstrap since the quantity of interest is the reflection matrix (R-matrix). Given a bulk S-matrix, the space of allowed R-matrices is an infinite dimensional convex space from which we plot a two dimensional section given by a convex domain on a 2d plane. In certain cases, at the boundary of the domain, we find vertices corresponding to integrable R-matrices with no free parameters. In other cases, when there is a one-parameter family of integrable R-matrices, the whole boundary represents integrable theories. We also consider R-matrices which are analytic in an extended region beyond the physical cuts, thus forbidding poles (resonances) in that region. In certain models, this drastically reduces the allowed space of R-matrices leading to new vertices that again correspond to integrable theories. We also work out the dual problem, in particular in the case of extended analyticity, the dual function has cuts on the physical line whenever unitarity is saturated. For the periodic Yang-Baxter solution that has zero transmission, we computed the R-matrix initially using the bootstrap and then derived its previously unknown analytic form.
The study of gapless phases with categorical (or so-called non-invertible) symmetries is a formidable task, in particular in higher than two space-time dimensions. In this paper we build on previous works [1,2] on gapped phases in (2+1)d and provide a system¬atic framework to study phase transitions with categorical symmetries. The Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) is, as often in these matters, the central tool. Applied to gapless theories, we need to consider the extension of the SymTFT to interfaces be¬tween topological orders, so-called “club sandwiches”, which realize generalizations of so-called Kennedy-Tasaki (KT) transformations. This requires an input phase transition for a smaller symmetry, such as the Ising transition for Z2, and the SymTFT constructs a transformation to a gapless phase with a larger categorical symmetry. We carry this out for categorical symmetries whose SymTFT is a (3+1)d Dijkgraaf-Witten (DW) theory for a finite group G with twist – so-called all bosonic fusion 2-categories. We classify such interfaces using a physically motivated picture of generalized gauging, as well as with a complementary analysis using (bi-)module 2-categories. This is exemplified in numer¬ous Abelian and non-Abelian DW theories, giving rise to interesting gapless phases such as intrinsically gapless symmetry protected phases (igSPTs) and spontaneous symmetry breaking phases (igSSBs) from Abelian, S3, and D8 DW theories.