460 research outputs found
On D-branes in the Nappi-Witten and GMM gauged WZW models
We construct D-branes in the Nappi-Witten (NW) and
Guadagnini-Martellini-Mintchev (GMM) gauged WZW models. For the NW and GMM models we present
the explicit equations describing the D-brane hypersurfaces in their target
spaces. In the latter case we show that the D-branes are classified according
to the Cardy theorem. We also present the semiclassical mass computation and
find its agreement with the CFT predictions.Comment: 16 pages, harvma
DBI analysis of generalised permutation branes
We investigate D-branes on the product GxG of two group manifolds described
as Wess-Zumino-Novikov-Witten models. When the levels of the two groups
coincide, it is well known that there exist permutation D-branes which are
twisted by the automorphism exchanging the two factors. When the levels are
different, the D-brane charge group demands that there should be
generalisations of these permutation D-branes, and a geometric construction for
them was proposed in hep-th/0509153. We give further evidence for this proposal
by showing that the generalised permutation D-branes satisfy the
Dirac-Born-Infeld equations of motion for arbitrary compact, simply connected
and simple Lie groups G.Comment: 19 pages, computation in section 3.5.1 corrected, conclusions
unchange
Five New Millisecond Pulsars From a Radio Survey of 14 Unidentified Fermi-LAT Gamma-ray Sources
We have discovered five millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in a survey of 14
unidentified Fermi-LAT sources in the southern sky using the Parkes radio
telescope. PSRs J0101-6422, J1514-4946, and J1902-5105 reside in binaries,
while PSRs J1658-5324 and J1747-4036 are isolated. Using an ephemeris derived
from timing observations of PSR J0101-6422 (P =2.57 ms, DM=12 pc cm-3), we have
detected {\gamma}-ray pulsations and measured its proper motion. Its
{\gamma}-ray spectrum (a power law of {\Gamma} = 0.9 with a cutoff at 1.6 GeV)
and efficiency are typical of other MSPs, but its radio and {\gamma}-ray light
curves challenge simple geometric models of emission. The high success rate of
this survey-enabled by selecting {\gamma}-ray sources based on their detailed
spectral characteristics-and other similarly successful searches indicate that
a substantial fraction of the local population of MSPs may soon be known.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, accepted by ApJ
On supersymmetric interfaces for string theory
We construct the world-sheet interface which preserves space-time
supersymmetry in type II superstring theories in the Green-Schwarz formalism.
This is an analog of the conformal interface in two-dimensional conformal field
theory. We show that a class of the supersymmetric interfaces generates
T-dualities of type II theories, and that these interfaces have a geometrical
interpretation in the doubled target space. We compute the partition function
with a pair of the supersymmetric interfaces inserted, from which we read off
the spectrum of the modes coupled to the interfaces and the Casimir energy
between them. We also derive the transformation rules under which a set of
D-branes is transformed to another by the interface.Comment: 1+23 pages, 1 figure; (v2) added comments, made changes in
presentatio
D-branes in Lorentzian AdS(3)
We study the exact construction of D-branes in Lorentzian AdS(3). We start by
defining a family of conformal field theories that gives a natural Euclidean
version of the SL(2,R) CFT and does not correspond to H(3)+, the analytic
continuation of AdS(3). We argue that one can recuperate the exact CFT results
of Lorentzian AdS(3), upon an analytic continuation in the moduli space of
these conformal field theories. Then we construct exact boundary states for
various symmetric and symmetry-breaking D-branes in AdS(3).Comment: JHEP style;21 pages, no figures; v2:some corrections, comments and
references adde
Population history from the Neolithic to present on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia: an ancient DNA perspective
Recent ancient DNA studies of western Eurasia have revealed a dynamic history of admixture, with evidence for major migrations during the Neolithic and Bronze Age. The population of the Mediterranean island of Sardinia has been notable in these studies –} Neolithic individuals from mainland Europe cluster more closely with Sardinian individuals than with all other present-day Europeans. The current model to explain this result is that Sardinia received an initial influx of Neolithic ancestry and then remained relatively isolated from expansions in the later Neolithic and Bronze Age that took place in continental Europe. To test this model, we generated genome-wide capture data (approximately 1.2 million variants) for 43 ancient Sardinian individuals spanning the Neolithic through the Bronze Age, including individuals from Sardinia{’}s Nuragic culture, which is known for the construction of numerous large stone towers throughout the island. We analyze these new samples in the context of previously generated genome-wide ancient DNA data from 972 ancient individuals across western Eurasia and whole-genome sequence data from approximately 1,500 modern individuals from Sardinia. The ancient Sardinian individuals show a strong affinity to western Mediterranean Neolithic populations and we infer a high degree of genetic continuity on the island from the Neolithic (around fifth millennium BCE) through the Nuragic period (second millennium BCE). In particular, during the Bronze Age in Sardinia, we do not find significant levels of the {“}Steppe{” ancestry that was spreading in many other parts of Europe at that time. We also characterize subsequent genetic influx between the Nuragic period and the present. We detect novel, modest signals of admixture between 1,000 BCE and present-day, from ancestry sources in the eastern and northern Mediterranean. Within Sardinia, we confirm that populations from the more geographically isolated mountainous provinces have experienced elevated levels of genetic drift and that northern and southwestern regions of the island received more gene flow from outside Sardinia. Overall, our genetic analysis sheds new light on the origin of Neolithic settlement on Sardinia, reinforces models of genetic continuity on the island, and provides enhanced power to detect post-Bronze-Age gene flow. Together, these findings offer a refined demographic model for future medical genetic studies in Sardinia
A test of general relativity from the three-dimensional orbital geometry of a binary pulsar
Binary pulsars provide an excellent system for testing general relativity
because of their intrinsic rotational stability and the precision with which
radio observations can be used to determine their orbital dynamics.
Measurements of the rate of orbital decay of two pulsars have been shown to be
consistent with the emission of gravitational waves as predicted by general
relativity, providing the most convincing evidence for the self-consistency of
the theory to date. However, independent verification of the orbital geometry
in these systems was not possible. Such verification may be obtained by
determining the orientation of a binary pulsar system using only classical
geometric constraints, permitting an independent prediction of general
relativistic effects. Here we report high-precision timing of the nearby binary
millisecond pulsar PSR J0437-4715, which establish the three-dimensional
structure of its orbit. We see the expected retardation of the pulse signal
arising from the curvature of space-time in the vicinity of the companion
object (the `Shapiro delay'), and we determine the mass of the pulsar and its
white dwarf companion. Such mass determinations contribute to our understanding
of the origin and evolution of neutron stars.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure
Defect loops in gauged Wess-Zumino-Witten models
We consider loop observables in gauged Wess-Zumino-Witten models, and study
the action of renormalization group flows on them. In the WZW model based on a
compact Lie group G, we analyze at the classical level how the space of
renormalizable defects is reduced upon the imposition of global and affine
symmetries. We identify families of loop observables which are invariant with
respect to an affine symmetry corresponding to a subgroup H of G, and show that
they descend to gauge-invariant defects in the gauged model based on G/H. We
study the flows acting on these families perturbatively, and quantize the fixed
points of the flows exactly. From their action on boundary states, we present a
derivation of the "generalized Affleck-Ludwig rule, which describes a large
class of boundary renormalization group flows in rational conformal field
theories.Comment: 43 pages, 2 figures. v2: a few typos corrected, version to be
published in JHE
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