Entanglement entropy in holographic CFTs with generic boundaries

Abstract:Entanglement entropy in holographic conformal field theories with boundaries of generic spacetime signature cannot be described entirely within the standard holographic duality to a real bulk spacetime. We show, both in static and time-dependent setups, that an exact match with the conformal field theory predictions in two boundary dimensions entails an extension of the dual spacetime to complex coordinates. As a consequence, relevant bulk objects such as Ryu-Takayanagi surfaces and branes are in general complex, yet anchored on a real asymptotic boundary preserving the physical meaning of field-theoretical quantities. We also provide a third numerical check of the holographic prediction with a two-dimensional system of free Gaussian fermions exhibiting the same asymptotic regimes across different entanglement phases.

arXiv:2609.21370 [hep-th]

(or arXiv:2609.21370v1 [hep-th] for this version)

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2609.21370 Focus to learn more arXiv-issued DOI via DataCite (pending registration)

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