Duality between (2+1)d quantum critical points

Publication date: Available online 9 September 2019Source: Physics ReportsAuthor(s): T. Senthil, Dam Thanh Son, Chong Wang, Cenke XuAbstractDuality refers to two equivalent descriptions of the same theory from different points of view. Recently there has been tremendous progress in formulating and understanding possible dualities of quantum many body theories in 2+1-spacetime dimensions. Of particular interest are dualities that describe conformally invariant quantum field theories in (2+1)d. These arise as descriptions of quantum critical points in condensed matter physics. The appreciation of the possible dual descriptions of such theories has greatly enhanced our understanding of some challenging questions about such quantum critical points. Perhaps surprisingly the same dualities also underlie recent progress in our understanding of other problems such as the half-filled Landau level and correlated surface states of topological insulators. Here we provide a pedagogical review of these recent developments from a point of view geared toward condensed matter physics.

Source: Physics Reports - September 9, 2019 Category: Physics Source Type: research