Bootstrap equations for $\mathcal{N}=4$ SYM with defects

TL;DR

This paper develops bootstrap equations for 4d $ =4$ superconformal theories with defects, revealing connections across different systems and deriving polynomial constraints on operator data.

Contribution

It introduces superconformal bootstrap equations for defect systems in 4d $ =4$ theories, uncovering a unifying structure and deriving polynomial constraints on the operator spectrum.

Findings

Derived superconformal Ward identities for boundary two-point functions.

Established a connection between spacetime and R-symmetry conformal blocks.

Formulated polynomial bootstrap equations for a closed subsector of operators.

Abstract

This paper focuses on the analysis of $4d$ $\mathcal{N}=4$ superconformal theories in the presence of a defect from the point of view of the conformal bootstrap. We will concentrate first on the case of codimension one, where the defect is a boundary that preserves half of the supersymmetry. After studying the constraints imposed by supersymmetry, we will obtain the Ward identities associated to two-point functions of $\tfrac{1}{2}$-BPS operators and write their solution as a superconformal block expansion. Due to a surprising connection between spacetime and R-symmetry conformal blocks, our results not only apply to $4d$ $\mathcal{N}=4$ superconformal theories with a boundary, but also to three more systems that have the same symmetry algebra: $4d$ $\mathcal{N}=4$ superconformal theories with a line defect, $3d$ $\mathcal{N}=4$ superconformal theories with no defect, and $OSP(4^*|4)$ superconformal quantum mechanics. The superconformal algebra implies that all these systems possess a closed subsector of operators in which the bootstrap equations become polynomial constraints on the CFT data. We derive these truncated equations and initiate the study of their solutions.