A String Model for AdS Gravity and Higher Spins

We construct a string sigma-model which low energy limit describes the anti de Sitter gravity and spin 3 massless fields in Vasiliev's frame-like formalism. The model is based on vertex operators generating vielbein and connection fields in the Mac Dowell - Mansoury - Stelle - West (MMSW) formulation of gravity. The structure of the vertex operators is based on the hidden symmetry generators in RNS superstring theory, realizing the isometry group of the AdS space. The beta-function equations in the sigma-model lead to equations of motion in the MMSW gravity with negative cosmological constant with the AdS geometry being the vacuum solution. Generalizations for the higher spin fields are analyzed and equations of motion for spin 3 fields in $d=3$ in frame-like formalism are obtained in the low energy limit of string theory. These equations correspond to those of $sl(3,R)$ truncated Chern-Simons action based on higher spin algebra $hs(1,1)$.Comment: 21 pages typos corrected, few clarifications and references adde

Higher Spin Conformal Currents in Minkowski Space

Using unfolded formulation of free equations for massless fields of all spins we obtain explicit form of higher-spin conformal conserved charges bilinear in 4d massless fields of arbitrary spins.Comment: LaTeX, 10 pages. Corrected typo

On N=1,2,4 Higher Spin Gauge Theories in Four Dimensions

We study N=1,2,4 higher spin superalgebras in four dimensions and higher spin gauge theories based on them. We extend the existing minimal N=2,4 theories and find a minimal N=1 theory. Utilizing the basic structure of the minimal N=8 theory, we express the full field equations for the N=1,2,4 theories in a universal form without introducing Kleinian operators. We also use a non-minimal N=4 higher spin algebra tensored with U(3) to describe a higher spin extension of N=4 supergravity coupled to the massless vector multiplets arising in the KK spectrum of 11D supergravity on the N=3 supersymmetric AdS_4 x N^{010} background. The higher spin theory also contains a triplet of vector multiplets which may play a role in the super-Higgs effect in which N=4 is broken down to N=3.Comment: Latex, 36 pages, remarks, footnotes and references adde

New Model of Higher-Spin Particle

We elaborate on a new model of the higher-spin (HS) particle which makes manifest the classical equivalence of the HS particle of the unfolded formulation and the HS particle model with a bosonic counterpart of supersymmetry. Both these models emerge as two different gauges of the new master system. Physical states of the master model are massless HS multiplets described by complex HS fields which carry an extra U(1) charge q. The latter fully characterizes the given multiplet by fixing the minimal helicity as q/2. We construct the twistorial formulation of the master model and discuss symmetries of the new HS multiplets within its framework.Comment: 13 pages, talk given by E. Ivanov at the XII International Conference on Symmetry Methods in Physics (SYMPHYS-XII), Yerevan, Armenia, July 03 - 08, 2006; to be published in the Proceeding

Mixed-symmetry massless gauge fields in AdS(5)

Free AdS(5) mixed-symmetry massless bosonic and fermionic gauge fields of arbitrary spins are described by using su(2,2) spinor language. Manifestly covariant action functionals are constructed and field equations are derived.Comment: 13 pages; v2: title changed, typos corrected, minor changes, reference added; v3: minor changes, published versio

Holography of the N=1 Higher-Spin Theory on AdS4

We argue that the N=1 higher-spin theory on AdS4 is holographically dual to the N=1 supersymmetric critical O(N) vector model in three dimensions. This appears to be a special form of the AdS/CFT correspondence in which both regular and irregular bulk modes have similar roles and their interplay leads simultaneously to both the free and the interacting phases of the boundary theory. We study various boundary conditions that correspond to boundary deformations connecting, for large-N, the free and interacting boundary theories. We point out the importance of parity in this holography and elucidate the Higgs mechanism responsible for the breaking of higher-spin symmetry for subleading N.Comment: 19 page

Effective action in a higher-spin background

We consider a free massless scalar field coupled to an infinite tower of background higher-spin gauge fields via minimal coupling to the traceless conserved currents. The set of Abelian gauge transformations is deformed to the non-Abelian group of unitary operators acting on the scalar field. The gauge invariant effective action is computed perturbatively in the external fields. The structure of the various (divergent or finite) terms is determined. In particular, the quadratic part of the logarithmically divergent (or of the finite) term is expressed in terms of curvatures and related to conformal higher-spin gravity. The generalized higher-spin Weyl anomalies are also determined. The relation with the theory of interacting higher-spin gauge fields on anti de Sitter spacetime via the holographic correspondence is discussed.Comment: 40 pages, Some errors and typos corrected, Version published in JHE

Holography, Unfolding and Higher-Spin Theory

Holographic duality is argued to relate classes of models that have equivalent unfolded formulation, hence exhibiting different space-time visualizations for the same theory. This general phenomenon is illustrated by the $AdS_4$ higher-spin gauge theory shown to be dual to the theory of 3d conformal currents of all spins interacting with 3d conformal higher-spin fields of Chern-Simons type. Generally, the resulting 3d boundary conformal theory is nonlinear, providing an interacting version of the 3d boundary sigma model conjectured by Klebanov and Polyakov to be dual to the $AdS_4$ HS theory in the large $N$ limit. Being a gauge theory it escapes the conditions of the theorem of Maldacena and Zhiboedov, which force a 3d boundary conformal theory to be free. Two reductions of particular higher-spin gauge theories where boundary higher-spin gauge fields decouple from the currents and which have free boundary duals are identified. Higher-spin holographic duality is also discussed for the cases of $AdS_3/CFT_2$ and duality between higher-spin theories and nonrelativistic quantum mechanics. In the latter case it is shown in particular that ($dS$) $AdS$ geometry in the higher-spin setup is dual to the (inverted) harmonic potential in the quantum-mechanical setup.Comment: 57 pages, V2: Acknowledgements, references, comments, clarifications and new section on reductions of particular HS theories associated with free boundary theories are added. Typos corrected, V3. Minor corrections: clarification in section 9 is added and typos correcte

Conformal Higher Spin Symmetries of 4d Massless Supermultiplets and osp(L,2M)osp(L,2M) Invariant Equations in Generalized (Super)Space

Realization of the conformal higher spin symmetry on the 4d massless field supermultiplets is given. The self-conjugated supermultiplets, including the linearized ${\cal N}=4$ SYM theory, are considered in some detail. Duality between non-unitary field-theoretical representations and the unitary doubleton--type representations of the 4d conformal algebra $su(2,2)$ is formulated in terms of a Bogolyubov transform. The set of 4d massless fields of all spins is shown to form a representation of $sp(8)$. The obtained results are extended to the generalized superspace invariant under $osp(L, 2M)$ supersymmetries. World line particle interpretation of the free higher spin theories in the $osp(2\N, 2M)$ invariant (super)space is given. Compatible with unitarity free equations of motion in the $osp(L,2M)$ invariant (super)space are formulated. A conjecture on the chain of $AdS_{d+1}/CFT_d \to AdS_{d}/CFT_{d-1} \to ...$ dualities in the higher spin gauge theories is proposed.Comment: Latex, 63 pages; no figures.V2 Typos corrected, References updated. V3.Typos correced, references and an explanation on the relationship with previous work in section 4 are added. The version to appear in Phys.Rev.

On manifolds admitting the consistent Lagrangian formulation for higher spin fields

We study a possibility of Lagrangian formulation for free higher spin bosonic totally symmetric tensor field on the background manifold characterizing by the arbitrary metric, vector and third rank tensor fields in framework of BRST approach. Assuming existence of massless and flat limits in the Lagrangian and using the most general form of the operators of constraints we show that the algebra generated by these operators will be closed only for constant curvature space with no nontrivial coupling to the third rank tensor and the strength of the vector fields. This result finally proves that the consistent Lagrangian formulation at the conditions under consideration is possible only in constant curvature Riemann space.Comment: 11 pages; v2: minor typos corrected, a reference adde