Holographic theory for continuous phase transitions -- the emergence and symmetry protection of gaplessness

Abstract

Two global symmetries are holo-equivalent if their algebras of local symmetric operators are isomorphic. Holo-equivalent classes of global symmetries are classified by gappable-boundary topological orders (TO) in one higher dimension (called symmetry TO), which leads to a symmetry/topological-order (Symm/TO) correspondence. We establish that: (1) For systems with a symmetry described by symmetry TO $M$, their gapped and gapless states are classified by condensable algebras $A$, formed by elementary excitations in $M$ with trivial self/mutual statistics. Such classified states (called $A$-states) can describe symmetry breaking orders, symmetry protected topological orders, symmetry enriched topological orders, gapless critical points, etc., in a unified way. (2) The local low-energy properties of an $A$-state can be calculated from its reduced symmetry TO $M_{/A}$, using holographic modular bootstrap (holoMB) which takes $M_{/A}$ as an input. Here $M_{/A}$ is obtained from $M$ by condensing excitations in $A$. Notably, an $A$-state must be gapless if $M_{/A}$ is nontrivial. This provides a unified understanding of the emergence and symmetry protection of gaplessness that applies to symmetries that are anomalous, higher-form, and/or non-invertible. (3) The relations between condensable algebras constrain the structure of the global phase diagram. (4) 1+1D bosonic systems with $S_3$ symmetry have four gapped phases with unbroken symmetries $S_3$, $\mathbb{Z}_3$, $\mathbb{Z}_2$, and $\mathbb{Z}_1$. We find a duality between two transitions $S_3 \leftrightarrow \mathbb{Z}_1$ and $\mathbb{Z}_3 \leftrightarrow \mathbb{Z}_2$: they are either both first order or both (stably) continuous, and in the latter case, they are described by the same conformal field theory (CFT).