\(N\)-point spherical functions and asymptotic boundary KZB equations (Q2144527)

Motivated by the theory of spherical functions in harmonic analysis on real reductive groups, the theory of quantum integrable systems of Calogero-Moser type and the conformal field theory with conformal boundary conditions, the authors consider a split real connected Lie group \(G\) with finite center, and \(K\) a maximal compact subgroup of \(G.\) They start their study by defining formal elementary spherical functions in terms of formal power series analogues of elementary spherical functions on \(G\) in which the role of the quasi-simple admissible \(G\)-representations is replaced by Verma modules. For generic highest weight, the authors express the formal elementary spherical functions in terms of Harish-Chandra series, integrate them to spherical functions on the regular part of \(G\), and show that they produce eigenstates for spin versions of quantum hyperbolic Calogero-Moser systems. Further, the authors investigate special subclasses of global and formal elementary spherical functions, called global and formal \(N\)-point spherical functions, the latter arising as limits of correlation functions for boundary Wess-Zumino-Witten conformal field theory on the cylinder when the position variables tend to infinity. Then, they construct global \(N\)-point spherical functions in terms of compositions of equivariant differential intertwiners associated with principal series representations, and express them in terms of Eisenstein integrals. They show that the eigenstates of the quantum spin Calogero-Moser system associated to \(N\)-point spherical functions are also common eigenfunctions of a commuting family of first order differential operators, which they call asymptotic boundary Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov-Bernard operators. These operators are given in terms of folded classical dynamical \(r\)-matrices and associated dynamical \(k\)-matrices. The paper is sustained by a list of relevant references.