Global and local properties of AdS(2) higher spin gravity

Two-dimensional BF theory with infinitely many higher spin fields is proposed. It is interpreted as the AdS(2) higher spin gravity model describing a consistent interaction between local fields in AdS(2) space including gravitational field, higher spin partially-massless fields, and dilaton fields. We carry out analysis of the frame-like and the metric-like formulation of the theory. Infinite-dimensional higher spin global algebras and their finite-dimensional truncations are realized in terms of o(2,1) - sp(2) Howe dual auxiliary variables.Comment: 51 pages; v2: comments and refs added, typos removed, JHEP versio

Two-column higher spin massless fields in AdS(d)

Particular class of AdS(d) mixed-symmetry bosonic massless fields corresponding to arbitrary two-column Young tableaux is considered. Unique gauge invariant free actions are found and equations of motion are analyzed.Comment: 12 page

Frame-like Lagrangians and presymplectic AKSZ-type sigma models

We study supergeometric structures underlying frame-like Lagrangians. We show that for the theory in n spacetime dimensions both the frame-like Lagrangian and its gauge symmetries are encoded in the target supermanifold equipped with the odd vector field, the closed 2-form of ghost degree n-1, and the scalar potential of ghost degree n. These structures satisfy a set of compatibility conditions ensuring the gauge invariance of the theory. The Lagrangian and the gauge symmetries have the same structures as those of AKSZ sigma model so that frame-like formulation can be seen as its presymplectic generalization. In contrast to the conventional AKSZ model the generalization allows to describe systems with local degrees of freedom in terms of finite-dimensional target space. We argue that the proposed frame-like approach is directly related de Donder-Weyl polymomentum Hamiltonian formalism. Along with the standard field-theoretical examples like Einstein-Yang-Mills theory we consider free higher spin fields, multi-frame gravity, and parameterized systems. In particular, we propose the frame-like action for free totally symmetric massless fields that involves all higher spin connections on an equal footing.Comment: 28 pages; v2: references added; v3: 34 pages, exposition improved, typos removed, comments and refs added, new section 3.6.3 added with an action for spin-s massless fields involving all HS connections on an equal footin

Monodromic vs geodesic computation of Virasoro classical conformal blocks

We compute 5-point classical conformal blocks with two heavy, two light, and one superlight operator using the monodromy approach up to third order in the superlight expansion. By virtue of the AdS/CFT correspondence we show the equivalence of the resulting expressions to those obtained in the bulk computation for the corresponding geodesic configuration.Comment: 20 pages, v2: more comments, refs added, NPB versio

Holographic duals of large-c torus conformal blocks

We study CFT2 conformal blocks on a torus and their holographic realization. The classical conformal blocks arising in the regime where conformal dimensions grow linearly with the large central charge are shown to be holographically dual to the geodesic networks stretched in the thermal AdS bulk space. We discuss the n-point conformal blocks and their duals, the 2-point case is elaborated in full detail. We develop various techniques to calculate both quantum and classical conformal block functions. In particular, we show that exponentiated global torus blocks reproduce classical torus blocks in the specific perturbative regimes of the conformal parameter space.Comment: 37 pages, v2: more comments, Appendix E --> Section 7.1, refs added, journal versio