13 research outputs found
Perturbing gauge/gravity duals by a Romans mass
We show how to produce algorithmically gravity solutions in massive IIA (as
infinitesimal first order perturbations in the Romans mass parameter) dual to
assigned conformal field theories. We illustrate the procedure on a family of
Chern--Simons--matter conformal field theories that we recently obtained from
the N=6 theory by waiving the condition that the levels sum up to zero.Comment: 30 page
Gravity in the 3+1-Split Formalism II: Self-Duality and the Emergence of the Gravitational Chern-Simons in the Boundary
We study self-duality in the context of the 3+1-split formalism of gravity
with non-zero cosmological constant. Lorentzian self-dual configurations are
conformally flat spacetimes and have boundary data determined by classical
solutions of the three-dimensional gravitational Chern-Simons. For Euclidean
self-dual configurations, the relationship between their boundary initial
positions and initial velocity is also determined by the three-dimensional
gravitational Chern-Simons. Our results imply that bulk self-dual
configurations are holographically described by the gravitational Chern-Simons
theory which can either viewed as a boundary generating functional or as a
boundary effective action.Comment: 25 pages; v2: minor improvements, references adde
Boosting Nearest-Neighbour to Long-Range Integrable Spin Chains
We present an integrability-preserving recursion relation for the explicit
construction of long-range spin chain Hamiltonians. These chains are
generalizations of the Haldane-Shastry and Inozemtsev models and they play an
important role in recent advances in string/gauge duality. The method is based
on arbitrary nearest-neighbour integrable spin chains and it sheds light on the
moduli space of deformation parameters. We also derive the closed chain
asymptotic Bethe equations.Comment: 10 pages, v2: reference added, minor changes, v3: published version
with added/updated reference
Towards the F-Theorem: N=2 Field Theories on the Three-Sphere
For 3-dimensional field theories with {\cal N}=2 supersymmetry the Euclidean
path integrals on the three-sphere can be calculated using the method of
localization; they reduce to certain matrix integrals that depend on the
R-charges of the matter fields. We solve a number of such large N matrix models
and calculate the free energy F as a function of the trial R-charges consistent
with the marginality of the superpotential. In all our {\cal N}=2
superconformal examples, the local maximization of F yields answers that scale
as N^{3/2} and agree with the dual M-theory backgrounds AdS_4 x Y, where Y are
7-dimensional Sasaki-Einstein spaces. We also find in toric examples that local
F-maximization is equivalent to the minimization of the volume of Y over the
space of Sasakian metrics, a procedure also referred to as Z-minimization.
Moreover, we find that the functions F and Z are related for any trial
R-charges. In the models we study F is positive and decreases along RG flows.
We therefore propose the "F-theorem" that we hope applies to all 3-d field
theories: the finite part of the free energy on the three-sphere decreases
along RG trajectories and is stationary at RG fixed points. We also show that
in an infinite class of Chern-Simons-matter gauge theories where the
Chern-Simons levels do not sum to zero, the free energy grows as N^{5/3} at
large N. This non-trivial scaling matches that of the free energy of the
gravity duals in type IIA string theory with Romans mass.Comment: 66 pages, 10 figures; v2: refs. added, minor improvement
Lectures on localization and matrix models in supersymmetric Chern-Simons-matter theories
In these lectures I give a pedagogical presentation of some of the recent
progress in supersymmetric Chern-Simons-matter theories, coming from the use of
localization and matrix model techniques. The goal is to provide a simple
derivation of the exact interpolating function for the free energy of ABJM
theory on the three-sphere, which implies in particular the N^{3/2} behavior at
strong coupling. I explain in detail part of the background needed to
understand this derivation, like holographic renormalization, localization of
path integrals, and large N techniques in matrix modelsComment: 73 pages, 7 figures. v2: references and clarifications added,
misprints corrected. v3: more references, clarifications, and corrections.
v4: more corrections and clarifications, final version to appear in J. Phys.
Gravity in the 3+1-Split Formalism I: Holography as an Initial Value Problem
We present a detailed analysis of the 3+1-split formalism of gravity in the
presence of a cosmological constant. The formalism helps revealing the intimate
connection between holography and the initial value formulation of gravity. We
show that the various methods of holographic subtraction of divergences
correspond just to different transformations of the canonical variables, such
that the initial value problem is properly set up at the boundary. The
renormalized boundary energy momentum tensor is a component of the Weyl tensor.Comment: 28 pages; v2: minor improvements, references adde
Superconformal M2-branes and generalized Jordan triple systems
Three-dimensional conformal theories with six supersymmetries and SU(4)
R-symmetry describing stacks of M2-branes are here proposed to be related to
generalized Jordan triple systems. Writing the four-index structure constants
in an appropriate form, the Chern-Simons part of the action immediately
suggests a connection to such triple systems. In contrast to the previously
considered three-algebras, the additional structure of a generalized Jordan
triple system is associated to a graded Lie algebra, which corresponds to an
extension of the gauge group. In this note we show that the whole theory with
six manifest supersymmetries can be naturally expressed in terms of such a
graded Lie algebra. Also the BLG theory with eight supersymmetries is included
as a special case.Comment: 15 pages, v2 and v3: minor corrections and clarifications, references
added, v2: section 4 extended, v3: published versio
M2-Branes and Fano 3-folds
A class of supersymmetric gauge theories arising from M2-branes probing
Calabi-Yau 4-folds which are cones over smooth toric Fano 3-folds is
investigated. For each model, the toric data of the mesonic moduli space is
derived using the forward algorithm. The generators of the mesonic moduli space
are determined using Hilbert series. The spectrum of scaling dimensions for
chiral operators is computed.Comment: 128 pages, 39 figures, 42 table
Calabi-Yau Volumes and Reflexive Polytopes
We study various geometrical quantities for Calabi–Yau varieties realized as cones over Gorenstein Fano varieties, obtained as toric varieties from reflexive polytopes in various dimensions. Focus is made on reflexive polytopes up to dimension 4 and the minimized volumes of the Sasaki–Einstein base of the corresponding Calabi–Yau cone are calculated. By doing so, we conjecture new bounds for the Sasaki–Einstein volume with respect to various topological quantities of the corresponding toric varieties. We give interpretations about these volume bounds in the context of associated field theories via the AdS/CFT correspondence