Spacetime symmetry-enriched SymTFT: From LSM anomalies to modulated symmetries and beyond

We extend the Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) framework beyond internal symmetries by including geometric data that encode spacetime symmetries. Concretely, we enrich the SymTFT of an internal symmetry by spacetime symmetries and study the resulting symmetry-enriched topological (SET) order, which captures the interplay between the spacetime and internal symmetries. We illustrate the framework by focusing on symmetries in {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D. To this end, we first analyze how gapped boundaries of {2+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D SETs affect the enriching symmetry, and apply this within the SymTFT framework to gauging and detecting anomalies of the {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D symmetry, as well as to classifying {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D symmetry-enriched phases. We then consider quantum spin chains and explicitly construct the SymTFTs for three prototypical spacetime symmetries: lattice translations, spatial reflections, and time reversal. For lattice translations, the interplay with internal symmetries is encoded in the SymTFT by translations permuting anyons, which causes the continuum description of the SymTFT to be a foliated field theory. Using this, we elucidate the relation between Lieb-Schultz-Mattis (LSM) anomalies and modulated symmetries and classify modulated symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases. For reflection and time-reversal symmetries, the interplay can additionally be encoded by symmetry fractionalization data in the SymTFT, and we identify mixed anomalies and study gauging for such examples.

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Journal
SciPost Physics
Published
2026-01-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21468/scipostphys.20.1.007
Primary Topic
Black Holes and Theoretical Physics
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Spacetime symmetry-enriched SymTFT: From LSM anomalies to modulated symmetries and beyond

Ömer M. Aksoy, Salvatore D. Pace, Ho Tat Lam
SciPost Physics
Black Holes and Theoretical Physics
article

Spacetime symmetry-enriched SymTFT: From LSM anomalies to modulated symmetries and beyond

Ömer M. Aksoy, Salvatore D. Pace, Ho Tat Lam
article en

Abstract

We extend the Symmetry Topological Field Theory (SymTFT) framework beyond internal symmetries by including geometric data that encode spacetime symmetries. Concretely, we enrich the SymTFT of an internal symmetry by spacetime symmetries and study the resulting symmetry-enriched topological (SET) order, which captures the interplay between the spacetime and internal symmetries. We illustrate the framework by focusing on symmetries in {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D. To this end, we first analyze how gapped boundaries of {2+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D SETs affect the enriching symmetry, and apply this within the SymTFT framework to gauging and detecting anomalies of the {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D symmetry, as well as to classifying {1+1} <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> D symmetry-enriched phases. We then consider quantum spin chains and explicitly construct the SymTFTs for three prototypical spacetime symmetries: lattice translations, spatial reflections, and time reversal. For lattice translations, the interplay with internal symmetries is encoded in the SymTFT by translations permuting anyons, which causes the continuum description of the SymTFT to be a foliated field theory. Using this, we elucidate the relation between Lieb-Schultz-Mattis (LSM) anomalies and modulated symmetries and classify modulated symmetry-protected topological (SPT) phases. For reflection and time-reversal symmetries, the interplay can additionally be encoded by symmetry fractionalization data in the SymTFT, and we identify mixed anomalies and study gauging for such examples.

SciPost PhysicsVol. 20(1)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Office of Science, Division of Materials Research, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara, High Energy Physics
Openalex Percentile: Top 85%
Black Holes and Theoretical Physics
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