Parafermionic Representation of the Affine sl(2/1)sl(2/1) Algebra at Fractional Level

The four fermionic currents of the affine superalgebra $sl(2/1)$ at fractional level $k=1/u-1$, u positive integer, are shown to be realised in terms of a free scalar field, an $sl(2)$ doublet field and a primary field of the parafermionic algebra $Z_{u-1}$.Comment: 5 pages, Latex 2

On a systematic approach to defects in classical integrable field theories

We present an inverse scattering approach to defects in classical integrable field theories. Integrability is proved systematically by constructing the generating function of the infinite set of modified integrals of motion. The contribution of the defect to all orders is explicitely identified in terms of a defect matrix. The underlying geometric picture is that those defects correspond to Backlund transformations localized at a given point. A classification of defect matrices as well as the corresponding defect conditions is performed. The method is applied to a collection of well-known integrable models and previous results are recovered (and extended) directly as special cases. Finally, a brief discussion of the classical $r$-matrix approach in this context shows the relation to inhomogeneous lattice models and the need to resort to lattice regularizations of integrable field theories with defects.Comment: 27 pages, no figures. Final version accepted for publication. References added and section 5 amende

Integrable Field Theories with Defects

The structure of integrable field theories in the presence of defects is discussed in terms of boundary functions under the Lagrangian formalism. Explicit examples of bosonic and fermionic theories are considered. In particular, the boundary functions for the super sinh-Gordon model is constructed and shown to generate the Backlund transformations for its soliton solutions.Comment: talk presented at the XVth International Colloquium on Integrable Systems and Quantum Symmetries, to appear in Czechoslovak Journal of Physics (2006

From Defects to Boundaries

In this paper we describe how relativistic field theories containing defects are equivalent to a class of boundary field theories. As a consequence previously derived results for boundaries can be directly applied to defects, these results include reduction formulas, the Coleman-Thun mechanism and Cutcosky rules. For integrable theories the defect crossing unitarity equation can be derived and defect operator found. For a generic purely transmitting impurity we use the boundary bootstrap method to obtain solutions of the defect Yang-Baxter equation. The groundstate energy on the strip with defects is also calculated.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures. V2 Removed comparison to RT algebras and added paragraph on the usefulness of transmitting defects in the study of boundary systems. References added. V3 Extended to include application to defect TB

Free field representations for the affine superalgebra sl(2|1)

Free field representations of the affine superalgebra $A(1,0)^{(1)}$ at level $k$ are needed in the description of the noncritical $N=2$ string. The superalgebra admits two inequivalent choices of simple roots. We give the Wakimoto representations corresponding to each of these and derive the relation between the two at the quantum level.Comment: Latex file, 12 page

Null vectors, 3-point and 4-point functions in conformal field theory

We consider 3-point and 4-point correlation functions in a conformal field theory with a W-algebra symmetry. Whereas in a theory with only Virasoro symmetry the three point functions of descendants fields are uniquely determined by the three point function of the corresponding primary fields this is not the case for a theory with $W_3$ algebra symmetry. The generic 3-point functions of W-descendant fields have a countable degree of arbitrariness. We find, however, that if one of the fields belongs to a representation with null states that this has implications for the 3-point functions. In particular if one of the representations is doubly-degenerate then the 3-point function is determined up to an overall constant. We extend our analysis to 4-point functions and find that if two of the W-primary fields are doubly degenerate then the intermediate channels are limited to a finite set and that the corresponding chiral blocks are determined up to an overall constant. This corresponds to the existence of a linear differential equation for the chiral blocks with two completely degenerate fields as has been found in the work of Bajnok~et~al.Comment: 10 pages, LaTeX 2.09, DAMTP-93-4

Admissible sl(2/1) Characters and Parafermions

The branching functions of the affine superalgebra $sl(2/1)$ characters into characters of the affine subalgebra $sl(2)$ are calculated for fractional levels $k=1/u-1$, u positive integer. They involve rational torus $A_{u(u-1)}$ and $Z_{u-1}$ parafermion characters.Comment: 14 pages, Latex 2

Characters of admissible representations of the affine superalgebra sl(2|1)

We calculate characters and supercharacters for irreducible, admissible representations of the affine superalgebra sl(2|1) in both the Ramond and Neveu-Schwarz sectors and discuss their modular properties in the special case of level k=-1/2. We also show that the non-degenerate integrable characters coincide with some N=4 superconformal characters

Equivalences between spin models induced by defects

The spectrum of integrable spin chains are shown to be independent of the ordering of their spins. As an application we introduce defects (local spin inhomogeneities in homogenous chains) in two-boundary spin systems and, by changing their locations, we show the spectral equivalence of different boundary conditions. In particular we relate certain nondiagonal boundary conditions to diagonal ones.Comment: 14 pages, 16 figures, LaTeX, Extended versio

Unconventional cosmology on the (thick) brane

We consider the cosmology of a thick codimension 1 brane. We obtain the matching conditions leading to the cosmological evolution equations and show that when one includes matter with a pressure component along the extra dimension in the brane energy-momentum tensor, the cosmology is of non-standard type. In particular one can get acceleration when a dust of non-relativistic matter particles is the only source for the (modified) Friedman equation. Our equations would seem to violate the conservation of energy-momentum from a 4D perspective, but in 5D the energy-momentum is conserved. One could write down an effective conserved 4D energy-momentum tensor attaching a ``dark energy'' component to the energy-momentum tensor of matter that has pressure along the extra dimension. This extra component could, on a cosmological scale, be interpreted as matter-coupled quintessence. We comment on the effective 4D description of this effect in terms of the time evolution of a scalar field (the 5D radion) coupled to this kind of matter.Comment: 9 pages, v2. eq.(17) corrected, comments on effective theory change