The periodic sl(2|1) alternating spin chain and its continuum limit as a bulk Logarithmic Conformal Field Theory at c=0

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the continuum limit of a specific periodic spin chain, revealing its structure as a logarithmic conformal field theory at central charge zero, with detailed representation theory and Jordan cell structures.

Contribution

It extends the understanding of the logarithmic CFT at c=0 by analyzing the periodic sl(2|1) spin chain and its algebraic and representation-theoretic properties.

Findings

Full structure of the vacuum module with Jordan cells of arbitrary rank

Representation theory of the finite size spin chain analyzed via affine Temperley-Lieb algebra

Continuum limit exhibits a logarithmic CFT with complex representation features

Abstract

The periodic sl(2|1) alternating spin chain encodes (some of) the properties of hulls of percolation clusters, and is described in the continuum limit by a logarithmic conformal field theory (LCFT) at central charge c=0. This theory corresponds to the strong coupling regime of a sigma model on the complex projective superspace $\mathbb{CP}^{1|1} = \mathrm{U}(2|1) / (\mathrm{U}(1) \times \mathrm{U}(1|1))$, and the spectrum of critical exponents can be obtained exactly. In this paper we push the analysis further, and determine the main representation theoretic (logarithmic) features of this continuum limit by extending to the periodic case the approach of [N. Read and H. Saleur, Nucl. Phys. B 777 316 (2007)]. We first focus on determining the representation theory of the finite size spin chain with respect to the algebra of local energy densities provided by a representation of the affine Temperley-Lieb algebra at fugacity one. We then analyze how these algebraic properties carry over to the continuum limit to deduce the structure of the space of states as a representation over the product of left and right Virasoro algebras. Our main result is the full structure of the vacuum module of the theory, which exhibits Jordan cells of arbitrary rank for the Hamiltonian.