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The PDF uses $V={\mathbb{C}}^{2n+1}$ for ${\mathfrak{so}}_{2n+1}$; the TeX incorrectly turns this into a power of two. The crystal of the defining odd-orthogonal representation is the chain with weights ${\epsilon }_1,\dots ,{\epsilon }_n,0,-{\epsilon }_n,\dots ,-{\epsilon }_1$. Label its vertices $1,\dots ,n,0,\bar{n},\dots ,\bar{1}$. Its directed edge colors areIn particular the short-root string $n\to 0\to \bar{n}$ has two edges of color $n$.

For a full drawing of the tensor product of crystals in any rank, take every ordered pair of chain vertices $(a,b)$. Let ${\epsilon }_i(b)$ count incoming edges of color $i$ along its string, and let ${\phi }_i(a)$ count outgoing ones. We use the conventionomitting an edge when the indicated operator vanishes. This crystal tensor-product rule specifies every vertex and every edge; the raising rule uses $\ge$ for its first-factor branch. The picture shows the chain and all 25 tensor vertices for $n=2$, with connected components distinguished by node color.

For $n\ge 2$, the three highest-weight vectors of the tensor crystal are $1\otimes 1$, $1\otimes 2$ and $1\otimes \bar{1}$. They have weights $2{\epsilon }_1$, ${\epsilon }_1+{\epsilon }_2$ and zero. There are no others: a highest tensor vertex must have highest first factor, and the string inequalities then restrict its second factor to these three vertices. ThereforeThe summands are the traceless symmetric square, the exterior square (the Adjoint representation), and the invariant scalar line. Their dimensions are $(2n+1)(n+1)-1$, $n(2n+1)$ and one, summing to $(2n+1{)}^2$. For $n\ge 3$ the first two highest weights are $2{\omega }_1,{\omega }_2$; for $n=2$ they are $2{\omega }_1,2{\omega }_2$. For $n=1$, the three tensor highest vertices are $1\otimes 1,1\otimes 0,1\otimes \bar{1}$, giving $L(4{\omega }_1)\oplus L(2{\omega }_1)\oplus L(0)$ of dimensions $5,3,1$.

Choose the chain basis $v_0,\dots ,v_6$ from the preceding part, normalized by $v_1=f_1{v}_0$, $v_2=f_2{v}_1$, $v_3=f_1{v}_2$. The associated sl2 Lie algebra strings give $e_1{v}_1=v_0$, $e_1{v}_3=2v_2$ and $e_2{v}_2=v_1$; other raising actions used below vanish because their proposed weights do not occur.

In the exterior square, $v_0\wedge v_1$ is a highest-weight vector of weight $2{\omega }_1-{\alpha }_1={\omega }_2$: $e_1$ produces $v_0\wedge v_0=0$, and $e_2$ kills both factors. Alsois a nonzero highest-weight vector of weight ${\omega }_1$. Its two $e_1$ terms cancel, and its $e_2$ image is zero. The Weyl complete reducibility theorem supplies irreducible summands with those weights; their dimensions $14+7=21$ exhaust $\dim {\Lambda }^{2}V$. ThusFor the symmetric square, $v_0\otimes v_0$ is a highest-weight vector of weight $2{\omega }_1$, giving a 27-dimensional summand. The longest Weyl-group element of $G_2$ acts as minus the identity, so the highest weight of a dual representation is $-w_0{\omega }_1={\omega }_1$: $V$ is self-dual. A nonzero intertwiner $V\to V^{\ast }$ gives a nondegenerate Lie-invariant bilinear form. It is symmetric, since an alternating bilinear form cannot be nondegenerate in odd dimension. Its inverse is a nonzero invariant vector in $S^{2}V$, supplying the scalar summand. Since $27+1=28=\dim S^{2}V$,These are the exterior and symmetric squares of the seven-dimensional G2 representation; all highest-weight and dimension claims are specified rather than relying on an unstated cross-product identity.

Set $\hslash =1$. Work on the strip $0\le \sigma \le \pi$ in conformal gauge, with worldsheet signature $(-,+)$ and target signature $(-,+,\dots ,+)$. In light-cone gauge in string theory, the independent fields are the $d=D-2=24$ transverse coordinates. Put the Neumann boundary condition at $\sigma =0$ and the Dirichlet boundary condition at $\sigma =\pi$; reversing the endpoints exchanges cosine and sine modes without changing the spectrum. The fixed endpoint is $X^i(\tau ,\pi )=y^i$.

Varying the transverse Polyakov action gives $({\partial }_{\tau }^2-{\partial }_{\sigma }^2)X^i=0$ and the spatial boundary contribution $-(2\pi {\alpha }^{\prime }{)}^{-1}\int d\tau [X^{\prime i}\delta X^i{]}_0^{\pi }$. At the free endpoint this vanishes precisely when $X^{\prime i}=0$; at the fixed endpoint $\delta X^i=0$. Separation of variables then gives $\cos (r\sigma )$ with $\cos (r\pi )=0$, hence $r=n+\frac{1}{2}$, $n=0,1,\dots$. These are Neumann-Dirichlet open-string boundary conditions. No dynamical transverse worldsheet zero mode survives: a constant solution must equal the prescribed $y^i$, and a linear-in-$\sigma$ solution violates the free-end condition.

Write $X^i-y^i={\sum }_{r>0}{q}_r^i(\tau )\cos (r\sigma )$. The orthogonality relation ${\int }_0^{\pi }\cos (r\sigma )\cos (s\sigma )d\sigma =(\pi /2){\delta }_{rs}$ reduces the action to independent harmonic oscillators:The canonical commutation relations $[q_r^i,P_s^j]=i{\delta }^{ij}{\delta }_{rs}$ determine normalized annihilation operators at $\tau =0$Thus $q_r^i=\sqrt{2{\alpha }^{\prime }/r}(a_r^i{e}^{-ir\tau }+a_r^{i†}{e}^{ir\tau })$. These formulas derive the quantization from the action rather than import integer-moded open-string rules.

For the usual phased string oscillators, set ${\alpha }_r^i=-i\sqrt{r}{a}_r^i$ and ${\alpha }_{-r}^i=i\sqrt{r}{a}_r^{i†}$ for $r>0$. Then the half-integer open-string oscillator expansion and algebra areThe corresponding field momentum density is ${\Pi }_i={\dot{X}}^i/(2\pi {\alpha }^{\prime })$. Completeness of the mixed-boundary eigenfunctions gives $[X^i(\sigma ),{\Pi }_j({\sigma }^{\prime })]=i{\delta }_j^i{\delta }_{\mathrm{ND}}(\sigma ,{\sigma }^{\prime })$, where ${\delta }_{\mathrm{ND}}=(2/\pi ){\sum }_{r>0}\cos (r\sigma )\cos (r{\sigma }^{\prime })$. This is a distribution identity on the mixed-boundary function space, not an unrestricted value at a fixed endpoint with a Dirichlet boundary condition.

Classically, the transverse Virasoro algebra zero-mode generator isThere is no transverse momentum term. If the two light-cone directions are common directions with Neumann boundary conditions, the full zero-mode constraint adds ${\alpha }^{\prime }{p}_{\parallel }^2=-2{\alpha }^{\prime }{p}^{+}{p}^{-}$: $L_{0,\mathrm{cl}}={\alpha }^{\prime }{p}_{\parallel }^2+L_{0,\mathrm{cl}}^{\perp }$. This assumption about the longitudinal directions is needed to interpret oscillator levels as target-space masses.

Quantizing the symmetrically ordered transverse generator gives $L_0^{\perp }=N+E_0$, where the string level operator is $N={\sum }_{i,r>0}r{a}_r^{i†}{a}_r^i$. Each harmonic oscillator contributes $r/2$ to the vacuum energy. Use zeta function regularization and the Riemann zeta function with the actual half-integer spectrum:Consequently the Neumann-Dirichlet string zero-point energy isIn the common convention $L_0={\alpha }^{\prime }{p}_{\parallel }^2+N-a$, the normal-ordering constant of a string is $a=-\frac{1}{2}$. This positive shift differs from the $-1$ vacuum energy of 24 integer-moded transverse bosons. The difference between those two vacuum energies is $3/2$. To distinguish zero-mode conventions, the ND twist conformal weight is $1/16$ per transverse boson. With 24 bosons, the plane matter generator is $L_0^{\mathrm{plane}}={\alpha }^{\prime }{p}_{\parallel }^2+N+3/2$; its physical open-string condition $L_0^{\mathrm{plane}}-1=0$ is exactly the strip/light-cone constraint ${\alpha }^{\prime }{p}_{\parallel }^2+N+1/2=0$ used here. The transverse plane and strip constants differ by the central charge shift $c_{\perp }/24=24/24=1$. A common exponential frequency cutoff independently gives ${\sum }_{r>0}r{e}^{-\epsilon r}={\epsilon }^{-2}+1/24+O({\epsilon }^2)$, confirming the finite part and avoiding invalid termwise manipulation of divergent sums.

Let $a_r^i|0⟩=0$. The lowest levels of a fully transverse ND bosonic string areThe third level has two $r=1/2$ excitations; there is no $r=1$ oscillator. Its indices are symmetric because the creation operators commute. With $L_0=0$ and the common longitudinal momentum convention, the rest energies and masses obeyAt fixed positive $p^{+}$ the corresponding light-cone energies are $p^{-}=(N+1/2)/(2{\alpha }^{\prime }{p}^{+})$; the table lists excitation levels, not a spectrum that remains discrete if longitudinal momentum is varied continuously.

The surviving transverse rotations form $SO(24)$. The ground state is a scalar, the next level its vector, and the third level the symmetric square of the vector. Separating its trace givesThe trace state is proportional to ${\sum }_i(a_{1/2}^{i†}{)}^2|0⟩$; subtracting this trace gives the 299-dimensional symmetric traceless square.

There is a qualification to the printed “little group”. The little group with mixed string boundary conditions must preserve the endpoints as well as momentum. These boundary conditions break the full 26-dimensional Lorentz group, so the massive states above cannot be classified as representations of the unbroken 26-dimensional massive little group $SO(25)$. In a D1–D25 realization the common worldvolume has Lorentz group $SO(1,1)$ and trivial connected massive little group; $SO(24)$ acts on the ND coordinates as an internal rotation group. The scalar, vector and symmetric trace-free decomposition is under the surviving transverse SO(24), with this boundary-background qualification.

In $V_n\otimes V_n$, interchange of the two factors commutes with SU2. On the highest-weight vector $D^r{x}_1^{n-r}{x}_2^{n-r}$ it acts by $(-1{)}^r$. Each irreducible summand in the Clebsch-Gordan decomposition has multiplicity one, so this sign is its scalar action on the entire summand. The symmetric square is the $+1$ eigenspace and the exterior square the $-1$ eigenspace. ThereforeFor instance, $S^2{V}_1=V_2$ and ${\Lambda }^2{V}_1=V_0$. The dimensions agree respectively with $(n+1)(n+2)/2$ and $n(n+1)/2$.

In the defining representation of the symplectic Lie algebra ${\mathfrak{sp}}_4$, the weights are ${\epsilon }_1,{\epsilon }_2,-{\epsilon }_1,-{\epsilon }_2$. Their highest weight, for the root basis of part (b), is thereforeThe flip on the tensor square commutes with the action of ${\mathfrak{sp}}_4$, giving $V\otimes V={\mathrm{Sym}}^{2}V\oplus {\Lambda }^{2}V$ with dimensions $10$ and $6$.

If $v_1$ is a highest-weight vector of weight ${\epsilon }_1$, then $v_1\otimes v_1$ is a highest-weight vector of weight $2{\omega }_1$ in the symmetric square. By Weyl complete reducibility theorem, this ensures an irreducible summand $V(2{\omega }_1)$ occurs. Its dimension is $10$ by part (b), exhausting the symmetric square.

Let $\omega$ denote the preserved symplectic form. The symplectic contraction of an exterior square is the nonzero equivariant mapwhere the target is a trivial Lie algebra representation. Thus its kernel has dimension $5$. Choose a weight vector $v_2$ of weight ${\epsilon }_2$ in a symplectic basis, with $\omega (v_1,v_2)=0$. The vector $v_1\wedge v_2$ belongs to this kernel and has weight ${\epsilon }_1+{\epsilon }_2={\omega }_2$. It is a highest-weight vector: none of ${\omega }_2+\alpha$, for $\alpha \in {\Phi }^{+}$, is a weight of ${\Lambda }^{2}V$, whose weights are $\pm {\epsilon }_1\pm {\epsilon }_2$ and zero. Hence the kernel contains $V({\omega }_2)$; its dimension $5$ exhausts the kernel. Weyl complete reducibility theorem supplies a complementary invariant line $V(0)$.

The resulting tensor-square decomposition of the defining sp4 representation is

Applying the Clebsch-Gordan decomposition for SU2 givesandOn the summand $V_{6-2j}$, interchange of the two tensor factors acts by $(-1{)}^j$; this is the flip parity in the SU2 tensor square. The even-$j$ summands make the symmetric square, so

Let $V=V({\omega }_2)$ be the five-dimensional defining representation of the so5 Lie algebra. The tensor square splits into its symmetric square and exterior square:The invariant symmetric form spans a trivial subrepresentation of $S^{2}V$, while its traceless complement is the irreducible $V(2{\omega }_2)$ of dimension $14$. The identification ${\Lambda }^{2}V\cong {\mathfrak{so}}_5$ makes the exterior square the ten-dimensional Adjoint representation, whose highest weight is the highest root $2{\omega }_1$. Therefore the Tensor-square decomposition of the defining so5 representation is

Quantum consistency requires cancellation of the $SU(N{)}^3$ gauge anomaly. The two-index symmetric square has cubic anomaly coefficient $A(S)=N+4$, whereas each antifundamental has coefficient $-1$. Therefore

Use the B2 root system conventionThus $V=L_{{\omega }_2}$ is the five-dimensional vector representation of the Special orthogonal Lie algebra ${\mathfrak{so}}_5$. Label its weight verticesThe crystal basis is the colored chainbecause each Kashiwara operator ${\tilde{f}}_i$ subtracts ${\alpha }_i$.

For the tensor product of crystals, write $XY$ for $X\otimes Y$. The complete colored-arrow graph is compactly specified byIts three connected highest-weight components start at $AA$, $AB$, and $AE$. Their vertex sets areTheir highest weights and dimensions identify the ten-vertex component with the exterior square and the other two with the symmetric square. Thereforeof dimensions $10$ and $14+1$, respectively.

The module $L=L_{{\omega }_1}$ is the four-dimensional spin representation. Its weights are $(\pm {\epsilon }_1\pm {\epsilon }_2)/2$, and its crystal is

Every weight of $V$ lies in the root lattice, so every weight of every tensor power $V^{\otimes n}$ also lies in that lattice. But ${\omega }_1=({\epsilon }_1+{\epsilon }_2)/2$ represents the nonzero coset in the quotient of the weight lattice by the root lattice. Consequently no irreducible constituent of $V^{\otimes n}$ can have highest weight ${\omega }_1$, and $L$ never occurs.

For the defining real representation of $SO(d)$, the symmetric square splits as a scalar trace plus symmetric trace-free tensors: ${\mathrm{Sym}}^2({\mathbb{R}}^d)=\mathbb{R}\oplus {\mathrm{Sym}}_0^2({\mathbb{R}}^d)$. The trace projection is $S\mapsto S-(\mathrm{tr}S)I/d$, so the second summand has dimension $d(d+1)/2-1$.

For $d\ge 3$ the trace-free summand is an irreducible real group representation. To see this, diagonalize a nonzero symmetric trace-free matrix in a nonzero invariant subspace. Two diagonal entries differ. Infinitesimal rotation in their plane yields a nonzero symmetric off-diagonal matrix; rotations carry it to every coordinate pair, and a rotation through $\pi /4$ produces a difference of two diagonal entries. These off-diagonal matrices and diagonal differences span all symmetric trace-free matrices, so the invariant subspace is the whole summand. For $d=24$, its dimension is 299, the third-level nontrivial multiplet of the lowest levels of a fully transverse ND bosonic string.

The tensor square is the second tensor power $V^{\otimes 2}=V\otimes V$. Over a field of characteristic different from two it decomposes as the direct sum of the symmetric square and exterior square.

For $V={\mathbb{C}}^{2n}$, $n\ge 3$, the symmetric square splits into an invariant line and its irreducible traceless part of highest weight $2{\epsilon }_1$. The exterior square of the defining orthogonal representation is the adjoint module of highest weight ${\epsilon }_1+{\epsilon }_2$. For $n=2$, the exterior square splits instead into highest weights ${\epsilon }_1-{\epsilon }_2$ and ${\epsilon }_1+{\epsilon }_2$. This exception reflects that so4 Lie algebra is semisimple but not simple.

For the five-dimensional defining representation of ${\mathfrak{so}}_5$, the symmetric square is the sum of its invariant trace and the traceless representation $V(2{\omega }_2)$, while the exterior square is the Adjoint representation $V(2{\omega }_1)$. Hence

For the defining four-dimensional representation $V$ of the symplectic Lie algebra ${\mathfrak{sp}}_4$, with the short simple root numbered first, its highest weight is ${\omega }_1$. Its tensor square decomposes aswith dimensions $10,5,1$. The first summand is the symmetric square; the other two form the exterior square, split by symplectic contraction of an exterior square.

For $n\ge 2$, the defining Lie algebra representation $V$ of ${\mathfrak{sp}}_{2n}$ has the displayed tensor product decomposition. The crystal of the defining symplectic representation and the crystal tensor-product rule give exactly these three highest vertices, each occurring once. The symmetric square is $L(2{\omega }_1)$ of dimension $n(2n+1)$. The exterior square splits into its invariant inverse-form line and the primitive exterior square $L({\omega }_2)$ of dimension $n(2n-1)-1$. Their dimensions sum to $4n^2$. At $n=1$, the exterior square is only the invariant line, giving $L(2{\omega }_1)\oplus L(0)$.

For $n\ge 2$, contraction with the invariant symmetric bilinear form splits off the trivial line in the symmetric square of the defining special orthogonal group representation. Its null space is the traceless symmetric square. It contains a highest-weight vector of weight $2e_1$, and the Weyl dimension formula gives $(n+1)(2n-1)$, exactly its dimension. Complete reducibility of compact-group representations therefore makes that null space irreducible. The entire symmetric square is reducible because of the invariant line.