Spontaneous symmetry breaking in the gl(N)-NLS hierarchy on the half line

We describe an algebraic framework for studying the symmetry properties of integrable quantum systems on the half line. The approach is based on the introduction of boundary operators. It turns out that these operators both encode the boundary conditions and generate integrals of motion. We use this direct relationship between boundary conditions and symmetry content to establish the spontaneous breakdown of some internal symmetries, due to the boundary. (author)