Phase Transitions of Orientifold Gauge Theories at Large N in Finite Volume

In this paper we consider the phase structure of ``orientifold'' gauge theories--obtained from unitary supersymmetric gauge theories by replacing adjoint Majorana fermions by Dirac fermions in the symmetric or anti-symmetric representations--in finite volume S^3 x S^1. If the radius of the S^3 is small the calculations can be performed at weak coupling for any value of the S^1 radius. We demonstrate that there is a confinement/de-confining type of phase transition even when the fermions have periodic (non-thermal) boundary conditions around S^1. At small radius of S^1, the theory is in a phase where charge conjugation and large non-periodic gauge transformation are spontaneously broken. But for large radius of S^1 the phase preseves these symmetries just as in the related supersymmetric theory.Comment: 12 page

Hagedorn Strings and Correspondence Principle in AdS(3)

Motivated by the possibility of formulating a strings/black hole correspondence in AdS space, we extract the Hagedorn behavior of thermal AdS_3 bosonic string from 1-loop partition function of SL(2,R) WZW model. We find that the Hagedorn temperature is monotonically increasing as the AdS radius shrinks, reaches a maximum of order of string scale set by the unitarity bound of the CFT for internal space. The resulting density of states near the Hagedorn temperature resembles the form as for strings in flat space and is dominated by the space-like long string configurations. We then argue a conjectured strings/black hole correspondence in AdS space by applying the Hagedorn thermodynamics. We find the size of the corresponding black hole is a function of the AdS radius. For large AdS radius a black hole far bigger than the string scale will form. On the contrary, when the AdS and string scales are comparable a string size black hole will form. We also examine strings on BTZ background obtained through SL(2,Z) transformation. We find a tachyonic divergence for a BTZ black hole of string scale size.Comment: 28 pages, 4 figures;v2 references added & appear on JHE

Information Recovery From Black Holes

We argue that if black hole entropy arises from a finite number of underlying quantum states, then any particular such state can be identified from infinity. The finite density of states implies a discrete energy spectrum, and, in general, such spectra are non-degenerate except as determined by symmetries. Therefore, knowledge of the precise energy, and of other commuting conserved charges, determines the quantum state. In a gravitating theory, all conserved charges including the energy are given by boundary terms that can be measured at infinity. Thus, within any theory of quantum gravity, no information can be lost in black holes with a finite number of states. However, identifying the state of a black hole from infinity requires measurements with Planck scale precision. Hence observers with insufficient resolution will experience information loss.Comment: First prize in the Gravity Research Foundation Essay Competition, 8 pages, Late

Holographic U(1)_A and String Creation

We analyze the resolution of the U(1)_A problem in the Sakai-Sugimoto holographic dual of large N_c QCD at finite temperature. It has been shown that in the confining phase the axial symmetry is broken at order 1/N_c, in agreement with the ideas of Witten and Veneziano. We show that in the deconfined phase the axial symmetry remains unbroken to all orders in 1/N_c. In this case the breaking is due to instantons which are described by spacelike D0-branes, in agreement with 'tHooft's resolution. The holographic dual of the symmetry breaking fermion condensate is a state of spacelike strings between the D0-brane and the flavor D8-branes, which result from a spacelike version of the string creation effect. In the intermediate phase of deconfinement with broken chiral symmetry the instanton gas approximation is possibly regulated in the IR, which would imply an eta' mass-squared of order exp(-N_c).Comment: 18 pages, 19 figures, minor change

Center symmetry and the orientifold planar equivalence

We study the center symmetry of SU(N) gauge theories with fermions in the two-index representations, by computing the effective potential of the Polyakov loop in the large-mass expansion on the lattice. In the large-N limit and at non-zero temperature, we find that the center symmetry is Z_N for fermions in the adjoint representation and just Z_2 for fermions in the (anti)symmetric representation. We discuss the fact that our results do not contradict the orientifold planar equivalence, which relates a common sector defined by the bosonic gauge-invariant C-even states of theories with fermions in different two-index representations. Our results complement the work of Armoni et al. (2007), who showed how at zero temperature a Z_N center symmetry is dynamically recovered also for fermions in the (anti)symmetric representation, by considering the theories at finite temperature.Comment: 27 pages, 7 eps figure

The arrow of time, black holes, and quantum mixing of large N Yang-Mills theories

Quantum gravity in an AdS spacetime is described by an SU(N) Yang-Mills theory on a sphere, a bounded many-body system. We argue that in the high temperature phase the theory is intrinsically non-perturbative in the large N limit. At any nonzero value of the 't Hooft coupling $\lambda$, an exponentially large (in N^2) number of free theory states of wide energy range (of order N) mix under the interaction. As a result the planar perturbation theory breaks down. We argue that an arrow of time emerges and the dual string configuration should be interpreted as a stringy black hole.Comment: 50 pages 3 figures uses harvma

Thermodynamics of Large AdS Black Holes

We consider leading order quantum corrections to the geometry of large AdS black holes in a spherical reduction of four-dimensional Einstein gravity with negative cosmological constant. The Hawking temperature grows without bound with increasing black hole mass, yet the semiclassical back-reaction on the geometry is relatively mild, indicating that observers in free fall outside a large AdS black hole never see thermal radiation at the Hawking temperature. The positive specific heat of large AdS black holes is a statement about the dual gauge theory rather than an observable property on the gravity side. Implications for string thermodynamics with an AdS infrared regulator are briefly discussed.Comment: 17 pages, 1 figure, v2. added reference

A silence black hole: Hawking radiation at the Hagedorn temperature

We compute semi-classically the Hawking emission for different types of black hole in type II string theory. In particular we analyze the thermal transition between NS5 branes and Little String Theory, finding compelling evidence for information recovering. We find that once the near horizon limit is taken the emission of a full family of models is exactly thermal even if back-reaction is taken into account. Consequently these theories are non-unitary and can not convey any information about the black hole internal states. It is argue that this behaviour matches the string theory expectations. We suggest a plausible reason for the vanishing of the jet-quenching parameter in such theories.Comment: 18 pages, harvma

Witten-Veneziano from Green-Schwarz

We consider the U(1) problem within the AdS/CFT framework. We explain how the Witten-Veneziano formula for the eta' mass is related to a generalized Green-Schwarz mechanism. The closed string mode, that cancels the anomaly of the gauged U(1) axial symmetry, is identified with the eta' meson. In a particular set-up of D3-branes on a C3/(Z3xZ3) orbifold singularity, the eta' meson is a twisted-sector R-R field.Comment: 10 pages, LaTex. 1 eps figure. v2: minor changes, refs. added, to appear in JHE

Multitrace Deformations of Vector and Adjoint Theories and their Holographic Duals

We present general methods to study the effect of multitrace deformations in conformal theories admitting holographic duals in Anti de Sitter space. In particular, we analyse the case that these deformations introduce an instability both in the bulk AdS space and in the boundary CFT. We also argue that multitrace deformations of the O(N) linear sigma model in three dimensions correspond to nontrivial time-dependent backgrounds in certain theories of infinitely many interacting massless fields on AdS_4, proposed years ago by Fradkin and Vasiliev. We point out that the phase diagram of a truly marginal large-N deformation has an infrared limit in which only an O(N) singlet field survives. We draw from this case lessons on the full string-theoretical interpretation of instabilities of the dual boundary theory and exhibit a toy model that resolves the instability of the O(N) model, generated by a marginal multitrace deformation. The resolution suggests that the instability may not survive in an appropriate UV completion of the CFT.Comment: 18 pages, minor changes, references added. Version accepted by JHE