11,095 research outputs found
Twisted Open Strings from Closed Strings: The WZW Orientation Orbifolds
Including {\it world-sheet orientation-reversing automorphisms}
in the orbifold program, we construct the operator
algebras and twisted KZ systems of the general WZW {\it orientation orbifold}
. We find that the orientation-orbifold sectors corresponding
to each are {\it twisted open} WZW strings, whose
properties are quite distinct from conventional open-string orientifold
sectors. As simple illustrations, we also discuss the classical (high-level)
limit of our construction and free-boson examples on abelian .Comment: 65 pages, typos correcte
Thermodynamics of Higher Spin Black Holes in AdS
We discuss the thermodynamics of recently constructed three-dimensional
higher spin black holes in SL(N,R)\times SL(N,R) Chern-Simons theory with
generalized asymptotically-anti-de Sitter boundary conditions. From a
holographic perspective, these bulk theories are dual to two-dimensional CFTs
with W_N symmetry algebras, and the black hole solutions are dual to thermal
states with higher spin chemical potentials and charges turned on. Because the
notion of horizon area is not gauge-invariant in the higher spin theory, the
traditional approaches to the computation of black hole entropy must be
reconsidered. One possibility, explored in the recent literature, involves
demanding the existence of a partition function in the CFT, and consistency
with the first law of thermodynamics. This approach is not free from
ambiguities, however, and in particular different definitions of energy result
in different expressions for the entropy. In the present work we show that
there are natural definitions of the thermodynamically conjugate variables that
follow from careful examination of the variational principle, and moreover
agree with those obtained via canonical methods. Building on this intuition, we
derive general expressions for the higher spin black hole entropy and free
energy which are written entirely in terms of the Chern-Simons connections, and
are valid for both static and rotating solutions. We compare our results to
other proposals in the literature, and provide a new and efficient way to
determine the generalization of the Cardy formula to a situation with higher
spin charges.Comment: 30 pages, PDFLaTeX; v2: typos corrected, explicit expressions for the
free energy adde
New Spin-Two Gauged Sigma Models and General Conformal Field Theory
Recently, we have studied the general Virasoro construction at one loop in
the background of the general non-linear sigma model. Here, we find the action
formulation of these new conformal field theories when the background sigma
model is itself conformal. In this case, the new conformal field theories are
described by a large class of new spin-two gauged sigma models. As examples of
the new actions, we discuss the spin-two gauged WZW actions, which describe the
conformal field theories of the generic affine-Virasoro construction, and the
spin-two gauged g/h coset constructions. We are able to identify the latter as
the actions of the local Lie h-invariant conformal field theories, a large
class of generically irrational conformal field theories with a local gauge
symmetry.Comment: LaTeX, 28 pages, references and clarifying remarks adde
An Infinite-Dimensional Family of Black-Hole Microstate Geometries
We construct the first explicit, smooth, horizonless black-hole microstate
geometry whose moduli space is described by an arbitrary function of one
variable and is thus infinite-dimensional. This is achieved by constructing the
scalar Green function on a simple D6 anti-D6 background, and using this Green
function to obtain the fully back-reacted solution for a supertube with varying
charge density in this background. We show that this supertube can store
parametrically more entropy than in flat space, confirming the entropy
enhancement mechanism that was predicted using brane probes. We also show that
all the local properties of the fully back-reacted solution can, in fact, be
obtained using the DBI action of an appropriate brane probe. In particular, the
supergravity and the DBI analysis yield identical functional bubble equations
that govern the relative locations of the centers. This indicates that there is
a non-renormalization theorem that protects these functional equations as one
moves in moduli space. Our construction creates configurations that are beyond
the scope of recent arguments that appear to put strong limits on the entropy
that can be found in smooth supergravity solutions.Comment: 46 pages, 1 figure, LaTe
Non-contact rack and pinion powered by the lateral Casimir force
The lateral Casimir force is employed to propose a design for a potentially
wear-proof rack and pinion with no contact, which can be miniaturized to
nano-scale. The robustness of the design is studied by exploring the relation
between the pinion velocity and the rack velocity in the different domains of
the parameter space. The effects of friction and added external load are also
examined. It is shown that the device can hold up extremely high velocities,
unlike what the general perception of the Casimir force as a weak interaction
might suggest.Comment: 4 pages, submitted for publication on 17 Jan 0
The Age Of Globular Clusters In Light Of Hipparcos: Resolving the Age Problem?
We review five independent techniques which are used to set the distance
scale to globular clusters, including subdwarf main sequence fitting utilizing
the recent Hipparcos parallax catalogue. These data together all indicate that
globular clusters are farther away than previously believed, implying a
reduction in age estimates. This new distance scale estimate is combined with a
detailed numerical Monte Carlo study designed to assess the uncertainty
associated with the theoretical age-turnoff luminosity relationship in order to
estimate both the absolute age and uncertainty in age of the oldest globular
clusters. Our best estimate for the mean age of the oldest globular clusters is
now Gyr, with a one-sided, 95% confidence level lower limit of
9.5 Gyr. This represents a systematic shift of over 2 compared to our
earlier estimate, due completely to the new distance scale---which we emphasize
is not just due to the Hipparcos data. This now provides a lower limit on the
age of the universe which is consistent with either an open universe, or a
flat, matter dominated universe (the latter requiring H_0 \le 67 \kmsmpc).
Our new study also explicitly quantifies how remaining uncertainties in the
distance scale and stellar evolution models translate into uncertainties in the
derived globular cluster ages. Simple formulae are provided which can be used
to update our age estimate as improved determinations for various quantities
become available.Comment: 41 pages, including 10 eps figs, uses aaspp4.sty and flushrt.sty,
submitted to Ap.J., revised to incorporate FULL Hipparcos catalogue dat
Space Charge Limited Transport and Time of Flight Measurements in Tetracene Single Crystals: a Comparative Study
We report on a systematic study of electronic transport in tetracene single
crystals by means of space charge limited current spectroscopy and time of
flight measurements. Both - and time of flight measurements show that the
room-temperature effective hole-mobility reaches values close to
cm/Vs and show that, within a range of temperatures, the mobility increases
with decreasing temperature. The experimental results further allow the
characterization of different aspects of the tetracene crystals. In particular,
the effects of both deep and shallow traps are clearly visible and can be used
to estimate their densities and characteristic energies. The results presented
in this paper show that the combination of - measurements and time of
flight spectroscopy is very effective in characterizing several different
aspects of electronic transport through organic crystals.Comment: Accepted by J. Appl. Phys.; tentatively scheduled for publication in
the January 15, 2004 issue; minor revisions compared to previous cond-mat
versio
Holographic Renormalization of general dilaton-axion gravity
We consider a very general dilaton-axion system coupled to Einstein-Hilbert
gravity in arbitrary dimension and we carry out holographic renormalization for
any dimension up to and including five dimensions. This is achieved by
developing a new systematic algorithm for iteratively solving the radial
Hamilton-Jacobi equation in a derivative expansion. The boundary term derived
is valid not only for asymptotically AdS backgrounds, but also for more general
asymptotics, including non-conformal branes and Improved Holographic QCD. In
the second half of the paper, we apply the general result to Improved
Holographic QCD with arbitrary dilaton potential. In particular, we derive the
generalized Fefferman-Graham asymptotic expansions and provide a proof of the
holographic Ward identities.Comment: 42 pages. v2: two references added. Version published in JHEP. v3:
fixed minor typos in eqs. (1.6), (2.3), (3.20), (A.3), (B.8), (B.12) and
(B.22
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