Local Operators of 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ Gauge Theories From the Affine Grassmannian

Abstract

We give a new, fully mathematical, construction of the space of local operators in the holomorphic-topological twist of 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ gauge theories. It is based on computations of morphism spaces in the DG category of line operators, which (by work of Kapustin-Saulina and Cautis-Williams) may be represented as ind-coherent sheaves on the affine Grassmannian and, more generally, on the ${\mathcal{R}}_{G,N}$ spaces of Braverman-Finkelberg-Nakajima. We prove that characters of our morphisms spaces reproduce the Schur indices of 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ theories, and that the spaces themselves agree with the 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ vertex algebras of Beem-Lemos-Liendo-Peelaers-Rastelli-Van Rees, Oh-Yagi, Butson and Jeong. We also generalize our construction to local operators at junctions of Wilson-'t Hooft lines, and compare the Euler character of the morphism spaces to the Schur indices in the work of Cordova-Gaiotto-Shao.