Finite symmetric integral tensor categories with the Chevalley property

TL;DR

This paper proves that finite symmetric integral tensor categories with the Chevalley property over fields of characteristic greater than 2 are equivalent to representations of certain finite supergroup schemes, confirming Ostrik's conjecture.

Contribution

It establishes a classification of such tensor categories via finite supergroup schemes and proves Ostrik's conjecture in this setting.

Findings

Classification of symmetric tensor categories via supergroup schemes

Verification of Ostrik's conjecture for characteristic p>2

Computation of Sweedler cohomology and classification of associators

Abstract

We prove that every finite symmetric integral tensor category $\mathcal{C}$ with the Chevalley property over an algebraically closed field $k$ of characteristic $p>2$ admits a symmetric fiber functor to $\text{sVec}$. This proves Ostrik's conjecture \cite[Conjecture 1.3]{o} in this case. Equivalently, we prove that there exists a unique finite supergroup scheme $\mathcal{G}$ over $k$ and a grouplike element $\epsilon\in k[\mathcal{G}]$ of order $\le 2$, whose action by conjugation on $\mathcal{G}$ coincides with the parity automorphism of $\mathcal{G}$, such that $\mathcal{C}$ is symmetric tensor equivalent to $\Rep(\mathcal{G},\epsilon)$. In particular, when $\mathcal{C}$ is unipotent, the functor lands in $\Vect$, so $\mathcal{C}$ is symmetric tensor equivalent to $\Rep(U)$ for a unique finite unipotent group scheme $U$ over $k$. We apply our result and the results of \cite{g} to classify certain finite dimensional triangular Hopf algebras with the Chevalley property over $k$ (e.g., local), in group scheme-theoretical terms. Finally, we compute the Sweedler cohomology of restricted enveloping algebras over an algebraically closed field $k$ of characteristic $p>0$, classify associators for their duals, and study finite dimensional (not necessarily triangular) local quasi-Hopf algebras and finite (not necessarily symmetric) unipotent tensor categories over an algebraically closed field $k$ of characteristic $p>0$. The appendix by K. Coulembier and P. Etingof gives another proof of the above classification results using the recent paper \cite{Co}, and, more generally, shows that the maximal Tannakian and super-Tannakian subcategory of a symmetric tensor category over a field of characteristic $\ne 2$ is always a Serre subcategory.