105 research outputs found
D-Branes at Singularities: A Bottom-Up Approach to the String Embedding of the Standard Model
We propose a bottom-up approach to the building of particle physics models from string theory. Our building blocks are Type II D-branes which we combine appropriately to reproduce desirable features of a particle theory model: 1) Chirality ; 2) Standard Model group ; 3) N=1 or N=0 supersymmetry ; 4) Three quark-lepton generations. We start such a program by studying configurations of D=10, Type IIB D3-branes located at singularities. We study in detail the case of Z_N, N=1,0 supersymmetric orbifold singularities leading to the SM group or some left-right symmetricextension. In general, tadpole cancellation conditions require the presence of additional branes, e.g. D7-branes. For the N=1 supersymmetric case the unique twist leading to three quark-lepton generations is Z_3, predicting . The models obtained are the simplest semirealistic string models ever built. In the non-supersymmetric case there is a three-generation model for each Z_N, N>4, but the Weinberg angle is in general too small. One can obtain a large class of D=4 compact models by considering the above structure embedded into a Calabi Yau compactification. We explicitly construct examples of such compact models using Z_3 toroidal orbifolds and orientifolds, and discuss their properties. In these examples, global cancellation of RR charge may be achieved by adding anti-branes stuck at the fixed points, leading to models with hidden sector gravity-induced supersymmetry breaking. More general frameworks, like F-theory compactifications, allow completely \NN=1 supersymmetric embeddings of our local structures, as we show in an explicit example.We propose a bottom-up approach to the building of particle physics models from string theory. Our building blocks are Type II D-branes which we combine appropriately to reproduce desirable features of a particle theory model: 1) Chirality ; 2) Standard Model group ; 3) N=1 or N=0 supersymmetry ; 4) Three quark-lepton generations. We start such a program by studying configurations of D=10, Type IIB D3-branes located at singularities. We study in detail the case of Z_N, N=1,0 orbifold singularities leading to the SM group or some left-right symmetricextension. In general, tadpole cancellation conditions require the presence of additional branes, e.g. D7-branes. For the N=1 supersymmetric case the unique twist leading to three quark-lepton generations is Z_3, predicting . The models obtained are the simplest semirealistic string models ever built. In the non-supersymmetric case there is a three-generation model for each Z_N, N>4, but the Weinberg angle is in general too small. One can obtain a large class of D=4 compact models by considering the above structure embedded into a Calabi Yau compactification. We explicitly construct examples of such compact models using Z_3 toroidal orbifolds and orientifolds, and discuss their properties. In these examples, global cancellation of RR charge may be achieved by adding anti-branes stuck at the fixed points, leading to models with hidden sector gravity-induced supersymmetry breaking. More general frameworks, like F-theory compactifications, allow completely \NN=1 supersymmetric embeddings of our local structures, as we show in an explicit example
M5-brane geometries, T-duality and fluxes
We describe a duality relation between configurations of M5-branes in
M-theory and type IIB theory on Taub-NUT geometries with NSNS and RR 3-form
field strength fluxes. The flux parameters are controlled by the angles between
the M5-brane and the (T)duality directions. For one M5-brane, the duality leads
to a family of supersymmetric flux configurations which interpolates between
imaginary self-dual fluxes and fluxes similar to the Polchinski-Strassler kind.
For multiple M5-branes, the IIB configurations are related to fluxes for
twisted sector fields in orbifolds. The dual M5-brane picture also provides a
geometric interpretation for several properties of flux configurations (like
the supersymmetry conditions, their contribution to tadpoles, etc), and for
many non-trivial effects in the IIB side. Among the latter, the dielectric
effect for probe D3-branes is dual to the recombination of probe M5-branes with
background ones; also, a picture of a decay channel for non-supersymmetric
fluxes is suggested.Comment: 30 pages, 3 figure
Intersecting Brane Worlds at One Loop
We develop techniques for one-loop diagrams on intersecting branes. The
one-loop propagator of chiral intersection states on D6 branes is calculated
exactly and its finiteness is shown to be guaranteed by RR tadpole
cancellation. The result is used to demonstrate the expected softening of power
law running of Yukawa couplings at the string scale. We also develop methods to
calculate arbitrary N-point functions at one-loop, including those without
gauge bosons in the loop. These techniques are also applicable to heterotic
orbifold models.Comment: 35 pages, 3 figures; added reference, corrected typos, JHEP styl
Holographic dual of the Standard Model on the throat
We apply recent techniques to construct geometries, based on local Calabi-Yau
manifolds, leading to warped throats with 3-form fluxes in string theory, with
interesting structure at their bottom. We provide their holographic dual
description in terms of RG flows for gauge theories with almost conformal
duality cascades and infrared confinement. We describe a model of a throat with
D-branes at its bottom, realizing a 3-family Standard Model like chiral sector.
We provide the explicit holographic dual gauge theory RG flow, and describe the
appearance of the SM degrees of freedom after confinement. As a second
application, we describe throats within throats, namely warped throats with
discontinuous warp factor in different regions of the radial coordinate, and
discuss possible model building applications.Comment: 46 pages, 21 figures, reference adde
Orientifolding the conifold
In this paper we study the N=1 supersymmetric field theories realized on the
world-volume of type IIB D3-branes sitting at orientifolds of non-orbifold
singularities (conifold and generalizations). Several chiral models belong to
this family of theories. These field theories have a T-dual realization in
terms of type IIA configurations of relatively rotated NS fivebranes, D4-branes
and orientifold six-planes, with a compact direction, along which the
D4-branes have finite extent. We compute the spectrum on the D3-branes directly
in the type IIB picture and match the resulting field theories with those
obtained in the type IIA setup, thus providing a non-trivial check of this
T-duality. Since the usual techniques to compute the spectrum of the model and
check the cancellation of tadpoles, cannot be applied to the case orientifolds
of non-orbifold singularities, we use a different approach, and construct the
models by partially blowing-up orientifolds of C^3/(Z_2 x Z_2) and C^3/(Z_2 x
Z_3) orbifolds.Comment: 52 pages, Latex 7 eps figure
N=1 Type IIA brane configurations, Chirality and T-duality
We consider four-dimensional N=1 field theories realized by type IIA brane
configurations of NS-branes and D4-branes, in the presence of orientifold
six-planes and D6-branes. These configurations are known to present interesting
effects associated to the appearance of chiral symmetries and chiral matter in
the four-dimensional field theory. We center on models with one compact
direction (elliptic models) and show that, under T-duality, the configurations
are mapped to a set of type IIB D3-branes probing N=1 orientifolds of C^2/Z_N
singularities. We explicitly construct these orientifolds, and show the field
theories on the D3-brane probes indeed reproduces the field theories
constructed using the IIA brane configurations. This T-duality map allows to
understand the type IIB realization of several exotic brane dynamics effects on
the type IIA side: Flavour doubling, the splitting of D6-branes and O6-planes
in crossing a NS-brane and the effect of a non-zero type IIA cosmological
constant turn out to have surprisingly standard type IIB counterparts.Comment: 39 pages, Latex, 7 eps figures. References adde
Chiral 4d string vacua with D-branes and NSNS and RR fluxes
We discuss type IIB orientifolds with D-branes, and NSNS and RR field
strength fluxes. The D-brane sectors lead to open string spectra with
non-abelian gauge symmetry and charged chiral fermions. The closed string field
strengths generate a scalar potential stabilizing most moduli. We describe the
construction of N=1 supersymmetric models in the context of orientifolds of IIB
theory on T^6/Z_2 x Z_2, containing D9-branes with world-volume magnetic
fluxes, and illustrate model building possibilities with several explicit
examples. We comment on a T-dual picture with D8-branes on non-Calabi-Yau
half-flat geometries, and discuss some of the topological properties of such
configurations. We also explore the construction of models with fluxes and with
D3-branes at singularities and present a non-supersymmetric 3-family SU(5)
model.Comment: latex, 49 pages, 2 figure
Realistic D-Brane Models on Warped Throats: Fluxes, Hierarchies and Moduli Stabilization
We describe the construction of string theory models with semirealistic
spectrum in a sector of (anti) D3-branes located at an orbifold singularity at
the bottom of a highly warped throat geometry, which is a generalisation of the
Klebanov-Strassler deformed conifold. These models realise the Randall-Sundrum
proposal to naturally generate the Planck/electroweak hierarchy in a concrete
string theory embedding, and yielding interesting chiral open string spectra.
We describe examples with Standard Model gauge group (or left-right symmetric
extensions) and three families of SM fermions, with correct quantum numbers
including hypercharge. The dilaton and complex structure moduli of the geometry
are stabilised by the 3-form fluxes required to build the throat. We describe
diverse issues concerning the stabilisation of geometric Kahler moduli, like
blow-up modes of the orbifold singularities, via D term potentials and gauge
theory non-perturbative effects, like gaugino condensation. This local
geometry, once embedded in a full compactification, could give rise to models
with all moduli stabilised, and with the potential to lead to de Sitter vacua.
Issues of gauge unification, proton stability, supersymmetry breaking and
Yukawa couplings are also discussed.Comment: 46 pages, 13 figures (figures 3 and 13 corrected
Yukawa couplings in intersecting D-brane models
We compute the Yukawa couplings among chiral fields in toroidal Type II
compactifications with wrapping D6-branes intersecting at angles. Those models
can yield realistic standard model spectrum living at the intersections. The
Yukawa couplings depend both on the Kahler and open string moduli but not on
the complex structure. They arise from worldsheet instanton corrections and are
found to be given by products of complex Jacobi theta functions with
characteristics. The Yukawa couplings for a particular intersecting brane
configuration yielding the chiral spectrum of the MSSM are computed as an
example. We also show how our methods can be extended to compute Yukawa
couplings on certain classes of elliptically fibered CY manifolds which are
mirror to complex cones over del Pezzo surfaces. We find that the Yukawa
couplings in intersecting D6-brane models have a mathematical interpretation in
the context of homological mirror symmetry. In particular, the computation of
such Yukawa couplings is related to the construction of Fukaya's category in a
generic symplectic manifold.Comment: 47 pages, using JHEP3.cls, 11 figures. Typos and other minor
corrections. References adde
A class of non-supersymmetric orientifolds
We study type IIB orientifolds on T^{2d}/Z_N with supersymmetry broken by the
compactification. We determine tadpole cancellation conditions including
anti-branes and considering different actions for the parity Omega. Using these
conditions we then obtain the spectrum of tachyons and massless states. Various
examples with N even correspond to type 0B orientifolds.Comment: 49 pages, Late
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