p-Branes, D-Branes and M-Branes

We consider solutions to the string effective action corresponding to p-Branes, D-Branes and M-Branes and discuss some of their properties.Comment: 8 pages, latex, uses sprocl.sty; talk given at the Workshop on Gauge Theories, Applied Supersymmetry and Quantum Gravity (London, July 1996) and the Strings '96 conference, ``Current Trends in String Theory'' (Santa Barbara, July 1996

Super D-branes

We present a manifestly Lorentz invariant, spacetime supersymmetric, and `$\kappa$-invariant' worldvolume action for all type II Dirichlet p-branes, $p\le9$, in a general type II supergravity background, including massive backgrounds in the IIA case. The $p=0,2$ cases are rederived from D=11. The $p=9$ case provides a supersymmetrization of the D=10 Born-Infeld action.Comment: 27pp. Typos corrected. To appear in Nucl. Phys.

Solitons on the Supermembrane

Energy bounds are derived for planar and compactified M2-branes in a hyper-K\"ahler background. These bounds are saturated, respectively, by lump and Q-kink solitons, which are shown to preserve a half of the worldvolume supersymmetry. The Q-kinks have a dual IIB interpretation as strings that migrate between fivebranes.Comment: 18 pp. Latex; v2: minor corrections, version as published in JHE

Some interesting features of new massive gravity

A proof that new massive gravity - the massive 3D gravity model proposed by Bergshoeff, Hohm and Townsend (BHT) - is the only unitary system at the tree level that can be constructed by augmenting planar gravity through the curvature-squared terms, is presented. Two interesting gravitational properties of the BHT model, namely, time dilation and time delay, which have no counterpart in the usual Einstein 3D gravity, are analyzed as well.Comment: Submitted to Classical and Quantum Gravit

Stationary Axion/Dilaton Solutions and Supersymmetry

We present a new set of supersymmetric stationary solutions of pure N=4,d=4 supergravity (and, hence, of low-energy effective string theory) that generalize (and include) the Israel-Wilson-Perj\'es solutions of Einstein-Maxwell theory. All solutions have 1/4 of the supersymmetries unbroken and some have 1/2. The full solution is determined by two arbitrary complex harmonic functions {\cal H}_{1,2} which transform as a doublet under SL(2,\R) S duality and N complex constants k^{(n)} that transform as an SO(N) vector. This set of solutions is, then, manifestly duality invariant. When the harmonic functions are chosen to have only one pole, all the general resulting point-like objects have supersymmetric rotating asymptotically Taub-NUT metrics with 1/2 or 1/4 of the supersymmetries unbroken. The static, asymptotically flat metrics describe supersymmetric extreme black holes. Only those breaking 3/4 of the supersymmetries have regular horizons. The stationary asymptotically flat metrics do not describe black holes when the angular momentum does not vanish, even in the case in which 3/4 of the supersymmetries are broken.Comment: A few comments added and alternative formulae for the horizon area with manifest moduli-independence and duality-invariance given. 36 page

Realisations of W3W_3 Symmetry

We perform a systematic investigation of free-scalar realisations of the Za\-mo\-lod\-chi\-kov $W_3$ algebra in which the operator product of two spin-three generators contains a non-zero operator of spin four which has vanishing norm. This generalises earlier work where such an operator was required to be absent. By allowing this spin-four null operator we obtain several realisations of the $W_3$ algebra both in terms of two scalars as well as in terms of an arbitrary number $n$ of free scalars. Our analysis is complete for the case of two-scalar realisations.Comment: 14 pages, LATEX, UG-6/9

Hypermultiplets and hypercomplex geometry from 6 to 3 dimensions

The formulation of hypermultiplets that has been developed for 5-dimensional matter multiplets is by dimensional reductions translated into the appropriate spinor language for 6 and 4 dimensions. We also treat the theories without actions that have the geometrical structure of hypercomplex geometry. The latter is the generalization of hyper-Kaehler geometry that does not require a Hermitian metric and hence corresponds to field equations without action. The translation tables of this paper allow the direct application of superconformal tensor calculus for the hypermultiplets using the available Weyl multiplets in 6 and 4 dimensions. Furthermore, the hypermultiplets in 3 dimensions that result from reduction of vector multiplets in 4 dimensions are considered, leading to a superconformal formulation of the c-map and an expression for the main geometric quantities of the hyper-Kaehler manifolds in the image of this map.Comment: 18 pages; v2: several clarifications in text and formulae, version to appear in Class.Quantum Gravit

Massive Dualities in Six Dimensions

We study compactifications of string theory and M-theory to six dimensions with background fluxes. The nonzero fluxes lead to additional mass parameters. We derive the S- and T-duality rules for the corresponding (massive) supergravity theories. Specifically, we investigate the massive T-duality between Type IIA superstring theory compactified on K3 with background fluxes and Type IIB superstring theory compactified on K3. Furthermore, we generalise to the massive case the 6D 'string-string' S-duality between M-theory on K3 x S^1 and the Heterotic String on T^4. Whereas in the case of massive T--duality the mass parameters are in the fundamental representation of the U-duality group O(4,20) we find that in the case of massive S-duality they are in the 3-index antisymmetric representation. In the latter case the mass parameters involved extend those of Kaloper and Myers. We apply our duality rules to massive brane solutions, like the domain wall solutions corresponding to the mass parameters and find new massive brane solutions. Finally, we discuss the higher-dimensional interpretation of the dualities and brane solutions.Comment: 28 page