Phases of Holographic Interfaces

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the phase structure of a simple holographic model of conformal interfaces, revealing multiple phases and phase transitions, including a first-order transition akin to the Hawking-Page transition, with implications for dual field theories.

Contribution

It provides a detailed phase diagram of a minimal holographic interface model, identifying novel phases and transitions, and offers new insights into the gravitational duals of interface phenomena.

Findings

Identification of five distinct phases depending on black hole and wall configurations.

Discovery of a first-order phase transition similar to Hawking-Page transition.

Description of gravitational solutions like Faraday cage and vacuum bubbles.

Abstract

We compute the phase diagram of the simplest holographic bottom-up model of conformal interfaces. The model consists of a thin domain wall between three-dimensional Anti-de Sitter (AdS) vacua, anchored on a boundary circle. We distinguish five phases depending on the existence of a black hole, the intersection of its horizon with the wall, and the fate of inertial observers. We show that, like the Hawking-Page phase transition, the capture of the wall by the horizon is also a first order transition and comment on its field-theory interpretation. The static solutions of the domain-wall equations include gravitational avatars of the Faraday cage, black holes with negative specific heat, and an intriguing phenomenon of suspended vacuum bubbles corresponding to an exotic interface/anti-interface fusion. Part of our analysis overlaps with recent work by Simidzija and Van Raamsdonk but the interpretation is different.