Workshop on Quantum Fields, Matter and their Symmetries

November 30 - December 4, 2026

The meeting will explore the deep connections among quantum field theory, quantum information theory, string theory, and condensed matter physics, with a focus on how symmetries and their anomalies constrain dynamics, characterize phases of matter, and govern transitions between them. Recent advances have revealed the importance of these ideas across a wide range of contexts, including defects, lattice systems, mixed-state topological phases, and quantum-information-theoretic models such as quantum cellular automata. The meeting will bring together researchers from these areas to foster interactions and deepen exchanges across communities.

Program Organizers:
Clay Córdova, University of Chicago
Shinsei Ryu, Princeton University
Nathan Seiberg, Institute for Advanced Study
Sahand Seifnashri, Institute for Advanced Study
Shu-Heng Shao, MIT
Yifan Wang, New York University

Confirmed Speakers:
Xie Chen, Caltech
Meng Cheng, Yale University
Thomas Dumitrescu, UCLA
Dominic Else, Perimeter Institute
Lukasz Fidkowski, University of Washington
Davide Gaiotto, Perimeter Institute
Tom Hartman, Stanford University
Yin-Chen He, Perimeter Institute
Anton Kapustin, Caltech
Zohar Komargodski, Stony Brook University
Ho Tat Lam, USC Dornsife and Stanford University
Michael Levin, University of Chicago
Maxim Metlitski, MIT
Greg Moore, Rutgers University
Salvatore Pace, Institute for Advanced Study
David Poland, Yale University
Marvin Qi, University of Chicago
Wilbur Shirley, University of Chicago
Nikita Sopenko, Institute for Advanced Study
Nathanan Tantivasadakarn, Stony Brook University
Ryan Thorngren, UCLA
Senthil Todadri, MIT
Chong Wang, Perimeter Institute
Xiao-Gang Wen, MIT
Carolyn Zhang, Harvard University

Registration for the workshop is now open. The deadline to register is Wednesday, November 18, 2026. Contact Audrey Smerkanich, [email protected], with any inquiries and to register.

The cost to register is $200.00 plus the Eventbrite registration fee. You must be a current faculty member, researcher or graduate student at an accredited institution to register and attend.

Registration includes all coffee breaks, lunches and dinners during the workshop program. Accommodations and travel expenses are not included in the workshop fee.

This workshop is sponsored by the Leinweber Forum for Theoretical and Quantum Physics.