Regular vertex operator subalgebras and compressions of intertwining operators (Q2201062)

Vertex Operator Algebras (VOAs) are algebraic structures motivated by two-dimensional Conformal Field Theory whose main data are a complex vector space \(V\), called the space of states, and a linear map \(Y \colon V \to \text{End}(V)[[ z^{\pm1}]]\) from \(V\) into the ring of formal series of endomorphisms in \(z \) and \(z^{-1}\) of \(V\) called state-field correspondence. The commonly used notation is \(Y(v,z) = \sum_{n \in \mathbb{Z}} Y(v)_n z^{-n-1}\), and \(Y(v,z)\) is called a vertex operator. \(V\)-modules correspond to complex vector spaces \(W\) endowed with a map \( V \to \text{End}(W)[[ z^{\pm1}]]\), and if \(W_i, W_j\) and \(W_k\) are \(V\)-modules then intertwiners of \(V\) of type \(\binom{k}{ i \, j}\) are defined as maps \( W_i \to \text{End}(W_j, W_k)[[ z^{\pm1}]]\) preserving the main algebraic relations. The category \(\text{Rep}(V)\) of \(V\)-modules can be shown to be a rigid modular tensor category if \(V\) is a self-dual and regular VOA of CFT type [\textit{Y.-Z. Huang}, Commun. Contemp. Math. 10, 871--911 (2008; Zbl 1169.17019)], where \(\text{Rep}(V)\) is defined in such a way that the fusion rules are exactly the dimensions of the spaces of intertwining operators. Proceeding on the line of his former works [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 372, No. 10, 7371--7424 (2019; Zbl 1464.17030)], in this paper the author proves a theorem with applications to unitarity problems and energy bounds in VOAs. More specifically, let \(V\) be a vertex operator subalgebra of a VOA \(U\), and assume both \(V\) and \(U\) to be self-dual and regular VOA of CFT type (plus other technical conditions). Let \(W_I\), \(W_J\) and \(W_K\) be \(U\)-modules, suppose \(Y^U\) to be a type \(\binom{K}{I \, J}\) intertwining operator of \(U\) and let \(W_i\), \(W_j\) and \(W_k\) be graded irreducible \(V\) submodules of \(W_I\), \(W_J\) and \(W_K\) respectively. Then one can find \(\lambda \in \mathbb{Q}\) such that \(z^\lambda\) times the restriction of \(Y^U\) to \(W_i\), \(W_j\) and \(W_k\) is an intertwining operator \(Y\) of \(V\). We then say that \(Y\) is a compression of \(Y^U\) (the precise definition makes use of the notion of weak \(V\)-module [\textit{C. Dong} et al., Adv. Math. 132, No. 1, 148--166 (1997; Zbl 0902.17014)]). In this work, it is shown that any intertwining operator of \(V\) can be written as a finite sum of compressions of intertwining operators of \(U\). The proof relies on a reductio ad absurdum: if \(Y^U_J\) is the \(U\)-vertex operator of \(W_J\), then an intertwining operator involving \(Y_J^U\) is constructed, and its fusion relations are computed by using two different methods giving incompatible results.