New Results on the Phase Diagram of the FFXY Model: A Twisted CFT Approach

TL;DR

This paper uses a twisted conformal field theory approach to analyze the complex phase transitions in the fully frustrated XY model, revealing its symmetry structure and excitation spectrum.

Contribution

It introduces a novel twisted CFT framework to study the FFXY model, providing new insights into its phase diagram and transition mechanisms.

Findings

Identifies the U(1)⊗Z₂ symmetry in the FFXY model.

Elucidates the spectrum of excitations in the model.

Clarifies the sequence of phase transitions.

Abstract

The issue of the number, nature and sequence of phase transitions in the fully frustrated XY (FFXY) model is a highly non trivial one due to the complex interplay between its continuous and discrete degrees of freedom. In this contribution we attack such a problem by means of a twisted conformal field theory (CFT) approach and show how it gives rise to the U (1)$\otimes Z_{2}$ symmetry and to the whole spectrum of excitations of the FFXY model.