Unitarity bounds and RG flows in time dependent quantum field theory

Abstract

We generalize unitarity bounds on operator dimensions in conformal field theory to field theories with spacetime dependent couplings. Below the energy scale of spacetime variation of the couplings, their evolution can strongly affect the physics, effectively shifting the infrared operator scaling and unitarity bounds determined from correlation functions in the theory. We analyze this explicitly for large-$N$ double-trace flows, and connect these to UV complete field theories. One motivating class of examples comes from our previous work on FRW holography, where this effect explains the range of flavors allowed in the dual, time dependent, field theory.

38 pages

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Cited by in corpus (8)

• Universal scaling in fast quantum quenches in conformal field theories
• Supersymmetric Janus Solutions in Four Dimensions
• Holographic RG-flows and Boundary CFTs
• Boundary conditions for scalars in Lifshitz
• New solutions with accelerated expansion in string theory
• Perturbative Critical Behavior from Spacetime Dependent Couplings
• (Delta a) curiosities in some 4d susy RG flows
• Deep Boundary Perturbations at a Quantum Critical Point