Tensor Decomposition, Parafermions, Level-Rank Duality, and Reciprocity Law for Vertex Operator Algebras

Abstract: For the semisimple Lie algebra $ \frak{sl}n$, the basic representation $L{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(1,0)$ of the affine Lie algebra $\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}$ is a lattice vertex operator algebra. The first main result of the paper is to prove that the commutant vertex operator algebra of $ L_{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(l,0)$ in the $l$-fold tensor product $ L{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(1,0)^{\otimes l}$ is isomorphic to the parafermion vertex operator algebra $K(\frak{sl}{l},n)$, which is the commutant of the Heisenberg vertex operator algebra $L_{\widehat{\frak{h}}}(n,0) $ in $L_{\widehat{\frak{sl}l}}(n,0)$. The result provides a version of level-rank duality. The second main result of the paper is to prove more general version of the first result that the commutant of $ L{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(l_1+\cdots +l_s, 0)$ in $L{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(l_1,0)\otimes \cdots \otimes L{\widehat{\frak{sl}{n}}}(l_s, 0)$ is isomorphic to the commutant of the vertex operator algebra generated by a Levi Lie subalgebra of $\frak{sl}{l_1+\cdots+l_s}$ corresponding to the composition $(l_1, \cdots, l_s)$ in the rational vertex operator algebra $ L_{\widehat{\frak{sl}}_{l_1+\cdots +l_s}}(n,0)$. This general version also resembles a version of reciprocity law discussed by Howe in the context of reductive Lie groups. In the course of the proof of the main results, certain Howe duality pairs also appear in the context of vertex operator algebras.