Physics Colloquium: “Non-Invertible Symmetry in the Quantum World”

The Syracuse University Department of Physics is pleased to welcome Ho Tat Lam, Post-Doctoral Researcher at MIT, for his talk titled, “Non-invertible Symmetry in the Quantum World.”

Ho Tat Lam is currently a post-doctoral researcher at MIT, working on the structural aspects of quantum field theory and quantum many-body systems, with close connections to high energy physics, condensed matter physics and quantum information theory. He obtained his Ph.D. in Physics from Princeton University in 2021, his M.Sc. in Physics from Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in 2016, and his B.Sc. in Physics and Mathematics from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Abstract: Lam will discuss recent advances in a novel class of symmetries in quantum systems, known as non-invertible symmetries. Unlike conventional symmetries governed by Wigner’s theorem, these are implemented by conserved operators that have no inverse, challenging and extending the traditional paradigm of symmetry in physics. He will survey their broad applications across various subfields, demonstrating their profound impact on our understanding of quantum systems.