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arxiv: 2606.25803 · v1 · pith:6IFVOBFTnew · submitted 2026-06-24 · ✦ hep-th

Massive fields in 3D Minkowski space and boundary correlators

Sudipta Dutta This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-06-25 19:29 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification ✦ hep-th
keywords Carrollian CFTholographymassive fieldsMinkowski spacetimescattering amplitudesbulk-boundary propagatorasymptotically flat spacetimes
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0 comments X

The pith

Correlation functions in two-dimensional Carrollian CFTs encode massive scattering amplitudes in three-dimensional Minkowski space.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper extends the Carrollian holography proposal to include massive fields in three-dimensional flat spacetime. It identifies a wider set of correlation functions in the two-dimensional Carrollian CFT that reproduce the massive scattering amplitudes. The authors construct a bulk-to-boundary propagator that generalizes the version already known for massless fields. This shows that the boundary theory can capture both massless and massive sectors using the same setup on null infinity.

Core claim

A broader class of correlation functions in two-dimensional Carrollian CFTs encode massive scattering amplitudes in three-dimensional Minkowski spacetime. A bulk-to-boundary propagator is constructed that generalizes the one already existing for massless fields.

What carries the argument

The broader class of correlation functions in the two-dimensional Carrollian CFT together with the generalized bulk-to-boundary propagator, which map massive bulk fields to boundary data.

If this is right

  • Massive scattering amplitudes in 3D Minkowski space can be extracted from data in the 2D Carrollian CFT.
  • The Carrollian dual description applies to massive fields without altering the boundary symmetry structure.
  • The propagator allows consistent mapping of massive bulk excitations to boundary operators.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

  • This framework could enable extraction of massive amplitudes that are difficult to compute directly in the bulk.
  • The same boundary setup might handle interacting massive fields or higher-point processes.
  • Links to other flat-space holography proposals could be tested by matching these correlators.

Load-bearing premise

The codimension-one Carrollian CFT on null infinity remains the correct dual description once massive fields are included, without additional bulk-boundary matching conditions or modifications to the Carrollian symmetry algebra.

What would settle it

A direct computation of one specific massive scattering amplitude from the new Carrollian correlation function, followed by comparison to the known result obtained by standard methods in three-dimensional Minkowski space.

read the original abstract

A codimension-one Carrollian CFT on null infinity has been proposed as the putative dual description of asymptotically flat spacetimes and has so far been successful in describing the massless S-matrices in one higher dimension. In this work, we investigate the current proposal of Carrollian holography to include the massive fields in the bulk. We discover a broader class of correlation functions in two-dimensional Carrollian CFTs and show that they encode massive scattering amplitudes in three-dimensional Minkowski spacetime. We also construct a bulk-to-boundary propagator that generalizes the one already existing for massless fields.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Referee Report

1 major / 0 minor

Summary. The paper claims that a broader class of correlation functions in two-dimensional Carrollian CFTs on null infinity encode massive scattering amplitudes in three-dimensional Minkowski spacetime. It also constructs a bulk-to-boundary propagator that generalizes the existing one for massless fields, thereby extending Carrollian holography to include massive bulk fields.

Significance. If the proposed mapping from the new Carrollian correlators to massive amplitudes can be made rigorous, the result would extend flat-space holography beyond the massless sector, providing a boundary description for a larger class of scattering processes. The construction of the generalized propagator is a concrete technical step that could be useful even if the full duality requires further justification.

major comments (1)
  1. [Abstract] Abstract and introduction: the assertion that the broader Carrollian correlators encode massive amplitudes rests on the unverified assumption that the codimension-one null-infinity CFT remains the complete dual once masses are introduced. Massive particles asymptote to timelike infinity rather than null infinity, yet no explicit bulk-boundary matching conditions, deformation of the Carrollian algebra, or comparison to known massive LSZ amplitudes are provided to justify the encoding.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

1 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for their careful reading of the manuscript and for raising this important point about the scope of the proposed encoding. We address the comment below and have revised the manuscript accordingly.

read point-by-point responses

  1. Referee: [Abstract] Abstract and introduction: the assertion that the broader Carrollian correlators encode massive amplitudes rests on the unverified assumption that the codimension-one null-infinity CFT remains the complete dual once masses are introduced. Massive particles asymptote to timelike infinity rather than null infinity, yet no explicit bulk-boundary matching conditions, deformation of the Carrollian algebra, or comparison to known massive LSZ amplitudes are provided to justify the encoding.

    Authors: We agree that massive particles have timelike asymptotic behavior and that a complete holographic dictionary for massive fields would ultimately require matching conditions at timelike infinity as well as a possible deformation of the Carrollian algebra. Our manuscript does not claim that the codimension-one null-infinity CFT constitutes the complete dual once masses are introduced. Instead, we construct an explicit bulk-to-boundary propagator for massive scalar fields that reduces to the known massless propagator in the appropriate limit, and we identify a broader class of Carrollian correlators whose functional form, after Fourier transform, reproduces the momentum-space structure of 3D massive scattering amplitudes. This constitutes a concrete, albeit partial, extension of the existing massless dictionary. We have not performed an explicit LSZ reduction or derived the full deformed algebra, both of which lie outside the scope of the present work. In the revised version we have tempered the language in the abstract and introduction, replacing the phrase “encode massive scattering amplitudes” with “provide a candidate holographic encoding for massive scattering amplitudes via the generalized propagator,” and we have added a dedicated paragraph in the introduction that explicitly acknowledges the timelike-asymptotics issue and lists the missing ingredients as directions for future research. revision: partial

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No significant circularity detected

full rationale

The paper constructs a generalized bulk-to-boundary propagator and a broader class of Carrollian CFT correlators, then states that these encode massive 3D scattering amplitudes. No equation or step is exhibited that reduces a claimed prediction to a fitted input by construction, nor does any load-bearing premise collapse to a self-citation chain or imported uniqueness theorem. The central mapping is presented as a new result rather than a tautological renaming or self-definition, rendering the derivation self-contained against the listed circularity patterns.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 0 axioms · 0 invented entities

Abstract-only review yields no explicit free parameters, axioms, or invented entities. The central claim rests on the unstated assumption that the Carrollian CFT duality continues to hold for massive fields.

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discussion (0)

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Reference graph

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