2025/01/15 by Finn Gagliano, Gagliano, Finn, Grigoletto, Andrea +2 · 2 citations
Computer Science · #Computability, Logic, AI Algorithms #FOS: Mathematics #FOS: Physical sciences #High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th) #Mathematical Physics (math-ph) #Quantum Algebra (math.QA) #Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el)
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2501.09069
openalex publication_date 2025/01/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The concept of a (de)confined phase in QFT is well-defined in the presence of 1-form symmetries and their spontaneous symmetry breaking. However, in scenarios where such symmetries are absent, confinement is not a well-defined phase property. In this work, we propose that, when restricting to a specific submanifold of the parameter space -- namely at zero temperature and fixed quark mass -- the confined and adjoint Higgs phases of scalar QCD can be distinguished through the different organization of their spectra, as seen from the perspective of the baryon symmetry. The analysis is performed in terms of an appropriate higher-categorical representation theory, recently developed for generalized symmetries. Consistent with expectations, we find that the confined phase permits only particles with integer baryon charges, while the Higgs phase is characterized by the coexistence of bare quarks and center vortices, exhibiting a non-trivial Aharonov-Bohm effect between these excitations.