Confining Phase of Three Dimensional Supersymmetric Quantum Electrodynamics

Abelian theories in three dimensions can have linearly confining phases as a result of monopole-instantons, as shown, for SU(2) Yang-Mills theory broken to its abelian subgroup, by Polyakov. In this article the generalization of this phase for N=2 supersymmetric abelian theories is identified, using a dual description. Topologically stable BPS-saturated and unsaturated particle and string solitons play essential roles. A plasma of chiral monopoles of charge 1 and -1 (along with their antichiral conjugates) are required for a stable confining vacuum. N=2 SU(2) Yang-Mills theory broken to U(1) lacks this phase because its chiral monopoles all have the same charge, leading to a runaway instability. The possibility of analogous confining phases of string theory, and a dual field theoretic model thereof, are briefly discussed.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, uses sprocl.tex. Submitted as a contribution to the Yuri Golfand memorial volum

A Chiral SU(N)SU(N) Gauge Theory and its Non-Chiral Spin(8)Spin(8) Dual

We study supersymmetric $SU(N-4)$ gauge theories with a symmetric tensor and $N$ antifundamental representations. The theory with $W=0$ has a dual description in terms of a non-chiral $Spin(8)$ theory with one spinor and $N$ vectors. This duality flows to the $SO(N)$ duality of Seiberg and to a duality proposed by one of us. It also flows to dualities for a number of $Spin(m)$ theories, $m\le 8$. For $N=6$, when an ${\cal N}=2$ SUSY superpotential is added, the singularities of Seiberg and Witten are recovered. For $N\le 6$, a mass for the spinor generates the branches of $SO(8)$ theories found by Intriligator and Seiberg. Other phenomena include a classical constraint mapped to an anomaly equation under duality and an intricate consistency check on the renormalization group flow.Comment: 13 pages, uses harvma

Messages for QCD from the Superworld

Recent discoveries in supersymmetric gauge theories have significant implications for our understanding for QCD and of field theory in general. The phases of N=1 supersymmetric QCD (SQCD) are discussed, and the possibility of similar phases in non-supersymmetric QCD is emphasized. It is described how duality in SQCD links many previously known duality transformations that were thought to be distinct, including Olive-Montonen duality of N=4 supersymmetric gauge theory and quark-hadron duality in (S)QCD. A link between Olive-Montonen duality and the confining strings of (S)QCD is explained, in which a picture of confinement via non-abelian monopole condensation --- a generalized dual Meissner effect --- emerges explicitly. In this picture, unlike previous ones, the confining flux tubes carry the correct Z_N discrete charges. A number of studies of these subjects, which could be carried out using lattice gauge theory, are proposed.Comment: Talk given at YKIS '97, Kyoto, Japan. 24 pages, 3 figures, uses ptptex.sty,ptpprep.st