- Open Access
Classification of minimal Abelian Coulomb branches
Phys. Rev. D 111, 125020 – Published 25 June, 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.111.125020
Abstract
Obtaining the classification of three-dimensional (3D) quivers whose Coulomb branches have an isolated singularity is an essential step in understanding moduli spaces of vacua of supersymmetric field theories with eight supercharges in any dimension. In this work, we derive a full classification for such Abelian quivers with arbitrary charges and identify all possible Coulomb branch geometries as quotients of by U(1) or a finite cyclic group. We give two proofs, one which uses the “decay and fission” algorithm and another one relying only on explicit computations involving 3D mirror symmetry. In the process, we put forward a method for computing the 3D mirror of any gauge theory, which is sensitive to discrete gauge factors in the mirror theory. This constitutes a confirmation for the decay and fission algorithm.
Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)
Article Text
References (44)
- D. Kaledin, Symplectic singularities from the poisson point of view, J. Reine Angew. Math. 2006, 135 (2006).
- H. Kraft and C. Procesi, Minimal singularities in , Inventiones Mathematicae 62, 503 (1980).
- H. Kraft and C. Procesi, On the geometry of conjugacy classes in classical groups, Commentarii mathematici Helvetici 57, 539 (1982).
- B. Fu, D. Juteau, P. Levy, and E. Sommers, Generic singularities of nilpotent orbit closures, Adv. Math. 305 (2017) 1.
- G. Bellamy, C. Bonnafé, B. Fu, D. Juteau, P. Levy, and E. Sommers, A new family of isolated symplectic singularities with trivial local fundamental group, Proc. London Math. Soc. 126, 1496 (2023).
- A. Bourget, J. F. Grimminger, A. Hanany, M. Sperling, and Z. Zhong, Branes, quivers, and the affine Grassmannian, Adv. Stud. Pure Math. 88, 331 (2023).
- A. Bourget and J. F. Grimminger, Fibrations and Hasse diagrams for 6d SCFTs, J. High Energy Phys. 12 (2022) 159.
- N. J. Hitchin, A. Karlhede, U. Lindstrom, and M. Rocek, Hyperkahler metrics and supersymmetry, Commun. Math. Phys. 108, 535 (1987).
- H. Nakajima, Instantons on ALE spaces, quiver varieties, and Kac-Moody algebras, Duke Math. J. 76, 365 (1994).
- K. A. Intriligator and N. Seiberg, Mirror symmetry in three-dimensional gauge theories, Phys. Lett. B 387, 513 (1996).
- M. Bullimore, T. Dimofte, and D. Gaiotto, The Coulomb branch of 3d theories, Commun. Math. Phys. 354, 671 (2017).
- M. Dedushenko, Y. Fan, S. S. Pufu, and R. Yacoby, Coulomb branch quantization and Abelianized monopole bubbling, J. High Energy Phys. 10 (2019) 179.
- S. Cremonesi, A. Hanany, and A. Zaffaroni, Monopole operators and Hilbert series of Coulomb branches of gauge theories, J. High Energy Phys. 01 (2014) 005.
- A. Braverman, M. Finkelberg, and H. Nakajima, Towards a mathematical definition of Coulomb branches of 3-dimensional gauge theories, II, Adv. Theor. Math. Phys. 22, 1071 (2018).
- S. Cremonesi, G. Ferlito, A. Hanany, and N. Mekareeya, Instanton operators and the Higgs branch at infinite coupling, J. High Energy Phys. 04 (2017) 042.
- G. Ferlito, A. Hanany, N. Mekareeya, and G. Zafrir, 3d Coulomb branch and 5d Higgs branch at infinite coupling, J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2018) 061.
- S. Cabrera, A. Hanany, and F. Yagi, Tropical geometry and five dimensional Higgs branches at infinite coupling, J. High Energy Phys. 01 (2019) 068.
- S. Cabrera, A. Hanany, and M. Sperling, Magnetic quivers, Higgs branches, and 6d theories, J. High Energy Phys. 06 (2019) 071.
- A. Bourget, S. Cabrera, J. F. Grimminger, A. Hanany, and Z. Zhong, Brane webs and magnetic quivers for SQCD, J. High Energy Phys. 03 (2020) 176.
- S. Cabrera, A. Hanany, and M. Sperling, Magnetic quivers, Higgs branches, and 6d theories—orthogonal and symplectic gauge groups, J. High Energy Phys. 02 (2020) 184.
- S. Cremonesi, G. Ferlito, A. Hanany, and N. Mekareeya, Coulomb branch and the moduli space of instantons, J. High Energy Phys. 12 (2014) 103.
- A. Bourget, S. Cabrera, J. F. Grimminger, A. Hanany, M. Sperling, A. Zajac, and Z. Zhong, The Higgs mechanism—Hasse diagrams for symplectic singularities, J. High Energy Phys. 01 (2020) 157.
- A. Bourget, S. Giacomelli, J. F. Grimminger, A. Hanany, M. Sperling, and Z. Zhong, S-fold magnetic quivers, J. High Energy Phys. 02 (2021) 054.
- A. Bourget, J. F. Grimminger, A. Hanany, and Z. Zhong, The Hasse diagram of the moduli space of instantons, J. High Energy Phys. 08 (2022) 283.
- A. Bourget, M. Sperling, and Z. Zhong, Decay and fission of magnetic quivers, Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 221603 (2024).
- A. Bourget, M. Sperling, and Z. Zhong, Higgs branch RG flows via decay and fission, Phys. Rev. D 109, 126013 (2024).
- J. F. Grimminger, W. Harding, and N. Mekareeya, Generalised-edged quivers and global forms, J. High Energy Phys. 03 (2025) 021.
- A. Beauville, Symplectic singularities, Inventiones Mathematicae 139, 541 (2000).
- A. Hanany and J. Troost, Orientifold planes, affine algebras and magnetic monopoles, J. High Energy Phys. 08 (2001) 021.
- D. Gaiotto and E. Witten, S-duality of boundary conditions in super Yang-Mills theory, Adv. Theor. Math. Phys. 13, 721 (2009).
- J. de Boer, K. Hori, H. Ooguri, Y. Oz, and Z. Yin, Mirror symmetry in three-dimensional theories, SL(2,Z) and D-brane moduli spaces, Nucl. Phys. 493, 148 (1997).
- A. Kapustin and M. J. Strassler, On mirror symmetry in three-dimensional Abelian gauge theories, J. High Energy Phys. 04 (1999) 021.
- D. Tong, Dynamics of supersymmetric Chern-Simons theories, J. High Energy Phys. 07 (2000) 019.
- S. Nawata, M. Sperling, H. E. Wang, and Z. Zhong, 3d mirror symmetry with 1-form symmetry, SciPost Phys. 15, 033 (2023).
- L. Bhardwaj, M. Bullimore, A. E. V. Ferrari, and S. Schafer-Nameki, Generalized symmetries and anomalies of 3d SCFTs, SciPost Phys. 16, 080 (2024).
- D. Gaiotto, A. Kapustin, N. Seiberg, and B. Willett, Generalized global symmetries, J. High Energy Phys. 02 (2015) 172.
- P.-S. Hsin, H. T. Lam, and N. Seiberg, Comments on one-form global symmetries and their gauging in 3d and 4d, SciPost Phys. 6, 039 (2019).
- E. Beratto, N. Mekareeya, and M. Sacchi, Zero-form and one-form symmetries of the ABJ and related theories, J. High Energy Phys. 04 (2022) 126.
- N. Mekareeya and M. Sacchi, Mixed anomalies, two-groups, non-invertible symmetries, and 3d superconformal indices, J. High Energy Phys. 01 (2023) 115.
- H. Nakajima, Towards a mathematical definition of Coulomb branches of 3-dimensional gauge theories, I, Adv. Theor. Math. Phys. 20, 595 (2016).
- B. Assel and J. Gomis, Mirror symmetry and loop operators, J. High Energy Phys. 11 (2015) 055.
- T. Dimofte, N. Garner, M. Geracie, and J. Hilburn, Mirror symmetry and line operators, J. High Energy Phys. 02 (2020) 075.
- S. Nawata, M. Sperling, H. E. Wang, and Z. Zhong, Magnetic quivers and line defects—On a duality between 3d unitary and orthosymplectic quivers, J. High Energy Phys. 02 (2022) 174.
- Y. Namikawa, A remark on isolated symplectic singularities with trivial local fundamental group, arXiv:2309.13877.