Daniel L. Jafferis

Relative entropy equals bulk relative entropy

A bstractWe consider the gravity dual of the modular Hamiltonian associated to a general subregion of a boundary theory. We use it to argue that the relative entropy of nearby states is given by the relative entropy in the bulk, to leading order in the bulk gravitational coupling. We also argue that the boundary modular flow is dual to the bulk modular flow in the entanglement wedge, with implications for entanglement wedge reconstruction.

Exact results for five-dimensional superconformal field theories with gravity duals

A bstractWe apply the technique of supersymmetric localization to exactly compute the S5 partition function of several large N superconformal field theories in five dimensions that have AdS6 duals in massive type IIA supergravity. The localization computations are performed in the non-renormalizable effective field theories obtained through relevant deformations of the UV superconformal field theories. We compare the S5 free energy to a holographic computation of entanglement entropy in the AdS6 duals and find perfect agreement. In particular, we reproduce the N5/2 scaling of the S5 free energy that was expected from supergravity.

Complex Chern-Simons from M5-branes on the Squashed Three-Sphere

A bstractWe derive an equivalence between the (2,0) superconformal M5-brane field theory dimensionally reduced on a squashed three-sphere, and Chern-Simons theory with complex gauge group. In the reduction, the massless fermions obtain an action which is second order in derivatives and are reinterpreted as ghosts for gauge fixing the emergent non-compact gauge symmetry. A squashing parameter in the geometry controls the imaginary part of the complex Chern-Simons level.

String Theory Origin of Dyonic N=8 Supergravity and Its Chern-Simons Duals

We clarify the higher-dimensional origin of a class of dyonic gaugings of D=4  N=8 supergravity recently discovered, when the gauge group is chosen to be ISO(7). This dyonically gauged maximal supergravity arises from consistent truncation of massive IIA supergravity on S^6, and its magnetic coupling constant descends directly from the Romans mass. The critical points of the supergravity uplift to new four-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS4) massive type IIA vacua. We identify the corresponding three-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT3) duals as super-Chern-Simons-matter theories with simple gauge group SU(N) and level k given by the Romans mass. In particular, we find a critical point that uplifts to the first explicit N=2 AdS4 massive IIA background. We compute its free energy and that of the candidate dual Chern-Simons theory by localization to a solvable matrix model, and find perfect agreement. This provides the first AdS4/CFT3 precision match in massive type IIA string theory.

Traversable Wormholes via a Double Trace Deformation

A bstractAfter turning on an interaction that couples the two boundaries of an eternal BTZ black hole, we find a quantum matter stress tensor with negative average null energy, whose gravitational backreaction renders the Einstein-Rosen bridge traversable. Such a traversable wormhole has an interesting interpretation in the context of ER=EPR, which we suggest might be related to quantum teleportation. However, it cannot be used to violate causality. We also discuss the implications for the energy and holographic entropy in the dual CFT description.

Branes, black holes and topological strings on toric Calabi-Yau manifolds

We develop means of computing exact degeneracies of BPS black holes on toric Calabi-Yau manifolds. We show that the gauge theory on the D4 branes wrapping ample divisors reduces to 2D q-deformed Yang-Mills theory on necklaces of P1s. As explicit examples we consider local P2, P1 × P1 and Ak type ALE space times C. At large N the D-brane partition function factorizes as a sum over squares of chiral blocks, the leading one of which is the topological closed string amplitude on the Calabi-Yau. This is in complete agreement with the recent conjecture of Ooguri, Strominger and Vafa.

The gravity duals of modular Hamiltonians

A bstractIn this work, we investigate modular Hamiltonians defined with respect to arbitrary spatial regions in quantum field theory states which have semi-classical gravity duals. We find prescriptions in the gravity dual for calculating the action of the modular Hamiltonian on its defining state, including its dual metric, and also on small excitations around the state. Curiously, use of the covariant holographic entanglement entropy formula leads us to the conclusion that the modular Hamiltonian, which in the quantum field theory acts only in the causal completion of the region, does not commute with bulk operators whose entire gauge-invariant description is space-like to the causal completion of the region.

Five-Dimensional Maximally Supersymmetric Yang-Mills in Supergravity Backgrounds

A bstractWe determine the action for five-dimensional maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills in off-shell supergravity backgrounds. The resulting theory contains novel five-dimensional BF type couplings as well as cubic scalar interactions which vanish in flat space.

On the construction of charged operators inside an eternal black hole

We revisit the holographic construction of (approximately) local bulk operators inside an eternal AdS black hole in terms of operators in the boundary CFTs. If the bulk operator carries charge, the ...

Toda Theory From Six Dimensions

A bstractWe describe a compactification of the six-dimensional (2,0) theory on a foursphere which gives rise to a two-dimensional Toda theory at long distances. This construction realizes chiral Toda fields as edge modes trapped near the poles of the sphere. We relate our setup to compactifications of the (2,0) theory on the five and six-sphere. In this way, we explain a connection between half-BPS operators of the (2,0) theory and twodimensional W-algebras, and derive an equality between their conformal anomalies. As we explain, all such relationships between the six-dimensional (2,0) theory and Toda field theory can be interpreted as statements about the edge modes of complex Chern-Simons on various three-manifolds with boundary.