Lectures on Yangian symmetry (Q2818221)

The purpose of this topical review is to provide a concise and modern introduction to the topic of Yangian symmetry, a notion that has become an essential tool in two-dimensional Quantum Field Theories and discrete spin chain models, among other applications in physics. Starting with the classical counterparts of the Yangian and extending the notion of Noether symmetries, nonlocal charges in classical two-dimensional Field Theory is introduced, and the main properties are analyzed. The definition of the Yangian algebra follows the original Drinfeld ansatz, constructing solutions to the quantum Yang-Baxter equation. At this point, the main three realizations of the Yangian are discussed, focusing also on its mathematical interpretation in terms of Hopf algebras and quantum groups. For the particular case of two-dimensional FT, it is shown how to renormalize the generators, and the consequences in scattering theory are explored. In opposition to the previously discussed continuous case, discrete Yangian symmetry in the context of integrable spin chains is studied, emphasizing the main differences with respect to field theories. As an illustration of the importance of Yangian symmetry in higher dimensions, the final part of the paper is devoted to a brief overview of Yangian symmetry in planar, four-dimensional super Yang-Mills theory, with special attention to the dilatation operator and the tree-level scattering amplitudes. An extensive and updated list of references is given, being very helpful to further analyze particular subjects of the theory. These lectures correspond to a series of lectures given by the author at the Young Researchers Integrability School at Durham University, and constitute an excellent introduction to the formalism of Yangian symmetry, which will certainly be of great interest for both the specialist and non-specialist in the topic.