Algorithmic Algebraic Geometry and Flux Vacua

We develop a new and efficient method to systematically analyse four dimensional effective supergravities which descend from flux compactifications. The issue of finding vacua of such systems, both supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric, is mapped into a problem in computational algebraic geometry. Using recent developments in computer algebra, the problem can then be rapidly dealt with in a completely algorithmic fashion. Two main results are (1) a procedure for calculating constraints which the flux parameters must satisfy in these models if any given type of vacuum is to exist; (2) a stepwise process for finding all of the isolated vacua of such systems and their physical properties. We illustrate our discussion with several concrete examples, some of which have eluded conventional methods so far.Comment: 41 pages, 4 figure

Self-improvement of the Bakry-\'Emery condition and Wasserstein contraction of the heat flow in RCD(K,\infty) metric measure spaces

We prove that the linear heat flow in a RCD(K,\infty) metric measure space (X,d,m) satisfies a contraction property with respect to every L^p-Kantorovich-Rubinstein-Wasserstein distance. In particular, we obtain a precise estimate for the optimal W_\infty-coupling between two fundamental solutions in terms of the distance of the initial points. The result is a consequence of the equivalence between the RCD(K,\infty) lower Ricci bound and the corresponding Bakry-\'Emery condition for the canonical Cheeger-Dirichlet form in (X,d,m). The crucial tool is the extension to the non-smooth metric measure setting of the Bakry's argument, that allows to improve the commutation estimates between the Markov semigroup and the Carr\'e du Champ associated to the Dirichlet form. This extension is based on a new a priori estimate and a capacitary argument for regular and tight Dirichlet forms that are of independent interest.Comment: (v2) Minor corrections. A discussion of quasi-regular Dirichlet forms has been added (Section 2.3) to cover the case of a sigma-finite reference measure. The proof of the quasi regularity of the Cheeger energy has been added (Thm. 4.1