Generalized electromagnetism of subdimensional particles: A spin liquid story

Abstract

It has recently been shown that there exists a class of stable gapless spin liquids in 3+1 dimensions described by higher-rank tensor U(1) gauge fields, giving rise to an emergent tensor electromagnetism. The tensor gauge field of these theories couples naturally to subdimensional particles (such as fractons), which are restricted by gauge invariance to move only along lower-dimensional subspaces of the system. Here we work out some of the basic generalized electromagnetic properties of subdimensional particles coupled to tensor electromagnetism, such as generalized electrostatic fields, potential formulations, Lorentz forces, Maxwell equations, and Biot-Savart laws. Some concepts from conventional electromagnetism will carry over directly, while others require significant modification.