Higher-spin Gauge and Trace Anomalies in Two-dimensional Backgrounds

TL;DR

This paper derives relations between covariant and holomorphic higher-spin currents in 2D backgrounds, generalizes trace and gauge anomalies up to spin 4, and applies these to analyze Hawking fluxes.

Contribution

It introduces new relations between covariant and holomorphic higher-spin currents and extends anomaly calculations to higher spins in two-dimensional backgrounds.

Findings

Derived relations between covariant and holomorphic higher-spin currents.

Obtained higher-spin generalizations of trace and gauge anomalies up to spin 4.

Applied results to analyze Hawking fluxes in black holes.

Abstract

Two-dimensional quantum fields in electric and gravitational backgrounds can be described by conformal field theories, and hence all the physical (covariant) quantities can be written in terms of the corresponding holomorphic quantities. In this paper, we first derive relations between covariant and holomorphic forms of higher-spin currents in these backgrounds, and then, by using these relations, obtain higher-spin generalizations of the trace and gauge (or gravitational) anomalies up to spin 4. These results are applied to derive higher-moments of Hawking fluxes in black holes in a separate paper arXiv:0710.0456.