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Category and Topological Order Seminar
Category and Topological Order Seminar
Global Condensed Matter Theory
Global Condensed Matter Theory
Organizer
Speaker
Liang Kong
Time
Wednesday, October 20, 2021 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM
Venue
1131
Online
Tencent 221 127 893
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Abstract
The title is motivated from the well-known Global Differential Geometry but has a slightly different meaning. Condensed matter theorists usually begin their studies from a concrete quantum many-body system (a lattice model with a concrete Hamiltonian). In this talk, I will explain a wave of new ideas of studying all/many quantum many-body systems at the same time. More precisely, we will study the categories of all gapped/gapless quantum liquid phases. For this reason, I will call this line of ideas "a Global Condensed Matter Theory". Some universal features of quantum liquid phases are emergent from this study. I will briefly outline them and discuss their consequences. As we will see, a new mathematical framework unifying all quantum liquid phases, including topological orders, SPT/SET orders, symmetry-breaking phases and gapless liquid phases, are emerging.
Speaker Intro
Liang Kong is a Professor of Mathematics at SUSTC (Shenzhen University of Science and Technology), specializing in Mathematical Physics. His research focuses on topological field theories, 2d conformal field theories, category theory, representation theory, and topological phases of matter. Kong earned his Ph.D. in Mathematics from Rutgers University in 2005. He has contributed significantly to the study of open-string vertex algebras, modular invariance, and topological orders in physics. His notable publications include works in journals such as Comm. Math. Phys., Adv. Math., and Phys. Rev. B. Kong has collaborated extensively with researchers like Yi-Zhi Huang, Ingo Runkel, and Xiao-Gang Wen, advancing the mathematical framework behind quantum field theory and topological phases.