Multi-Strings on AdS_3 x S^3 from Matrix String Theory

We analyze the Coulomb branch of Matrix string theory in the presence of NS5-branes. If we regard the components of U(1) gauge fields as the dualized longitudinal coordinates, we obtain the symmetric product of AdS_3 x S^3 x R^4 as the geometry of Coulomb branch. We observe that the absence or presence of the nonzero electric flux determines whether the string propagates in bulk as an ordinary closed string or is forced to live near the boundary. We further discuss the issues of the physical spectrum from the viewpoint of Matrix string theory. We show that the twisted sectors of CFT on the symmetric orbifold, which correspond to glued strings, turn out to yield many chiral primaries that were hitherto considered to be missing. We also comment on the threshold energy in Liouville sector where continuous spectrum begins.Comment: 19pages, no figures, LaTeX; minor correction

Interpreting the M2-brane Action

The world-volume theory of multiple M2-branes proposed recently has a free scalar field. For large vev of this scalar field the world-volume action reduces to that of multiple D2-branes with Yang-Mills coupling proportional to the vev. We suggest that the correct interpretation of this scalar field is as the radial position of the M2-brane center of mass in a cylindrical polar coordinate system. Regarding the azimuthal angle as compact we can regard this as a set of coincident D2-branes in type IIA string theory with varying dilaton and metric. We find that the effective world-volume theory on the D2-branes has Yang-Mills coupling proportional to the radial coordinate; furthermore the radial coordinate satisfies free field equations of motion. This agrees with the corresponding results derived from the M2-brane world-volume theory.Comment: LaTeX file, 6 page

Notes on Supersymmetry Enhancement of ABJM Theory

We study the supersymmetry enhancement of ABJM theory. Starting from a ${\cal N}=2$ supersymmetric Chern-Simons matter theory with gauge group U(2)$\times$U(2) which is a truncated version of the ABJM theory, we find by using the monopole operator that there is additional ${\cal N}=2$ supersymmetry related to the gauge group. We show this additional supersymmetry can combine with ${\cal N}=6$ supersymmetry of the original ABJM theory to an enhanced ${\cal N}=8$ SUSY with gauge group U(2)$\times$U(2) in the case $k=1,2$. We also discuss the supersymmetry enhancement of the ABJM theory with U($N$)$\times$U($N$) gauge group and find a condition which should be satisfied by the monopole operator.Comment: 23 pages, no figure, minor corrections, version to appear in JHE

Vortex-type Half-BPS Solitons in ABJM Theory

We study Aharony-Bergman-Jafferis-Maldacena (ABJM) theory without and with mass deformation. It is shown that maximally supersymmetry preserving, D-term, and F-term mass deformations of single mass parameter are equivalent. We obtain vortex-type half-BPS equations and the corresponding energy bound. For the undeformed ABJM theory, the resulting half-BPS equation is the same as that in supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory and no finite energy regular BPS solution is found. For the mass-deformed ABJM theory, the half-BPS equations for U(2)xU(2) case reduce to the vortex equation in Maxwell-Higgs theory, which supports static regular multi-vortex solutions. In U(N)xU(N) case with N>2 the nonabelian vortex equation of Yang-Mills-Higgs theory is obtained.Comment: 22 pages, v2: references added, v3: minor correction, to appear in PR

M2-M5 Systems in N=6 Chern-Simons Theory

We study two aspects of M5-branes in N=6 U(N)xU(N) Chern-Simons gauge theory. We first examine multiple M2-branes ending on a M5-brane. We study Basu-Harvey type cubic equations, fuzzy funnel configurations, and derive the M5-brane tension from the N=6 theory. We also find a limit in which the above M2-M5 system reduces to a D2-D4 system and we recover the Nahm equation from the N=6 theory. We then examine domain wall configurations in mass-deformed N=6 theory with a manifest SU(2)xSU(2)xU(1) global symmetry. We derive tensions of domain walls connecting between arbitrary M5-brane vacua of the deformed theory and observe their consistency with gravity dual expectations.Comment: 15 pages, Latex. v2: typos fixed, reference added. v3: Journal version in JHE

D2 to M2 Procedure for D2-Brane DBI Effective Action

We apply the procedure that was suggested in [arXiv:0806.1639] to the case of abelian D2-brane Dirac-Born-Infeld effective action and discuss its limitation. Then we suggest an alternative form of this procedure that is based on an existence of interpolating action proposed in [hep-th/9707113,hep-th/9707011].Comment: 15 pages, typos corrected, references adde

M2-brane Perspective on N=6 Super Chern-Simons Theory at Level k

Recently, O. Aharony, O. Bergman, D. L. Jafferis and J. Maldacena (ABJM) proposed three-dimensional super Chern-Simons-matter theory, which at level k is supposed to describe the low energy limit of N M2-branes. For large N and k, but fixed 't Hooft coupling \lambda=N/k, it is dual to type IIA string theory on AdS_4 x CP^3. For large N but finite k, it is dual to M theory on AdS_4 x S^7/Z_k. In this paper, relying on the second duality, we find exact giant magnon and single spike solutions of membrane configurations on AdS_4 x S^7/Z_k by reducing the system to the Neumann-Rosochatius integrable model. We derive the dispersion relations and their finite-size corrections with explicit dependence on the level k.Comment: 19 pages, References adde