Michael Gutperle

Effects of D instantons

Scattering of fundamental states of type IIB supergravity and superstring theory is discussed at low orders in perturbation theory in the background of a D-instanton. The integration over fermionic zero-modes in both the low energy supergravity and in the string theory leads to explicit non-perturbative terms in the effective action. These include a single instanton correction to the known tree-level and one-loop R4 interactions. The ‘spectrum’ of multiply charged D-instantons is deduced by T-duality in nine dimensions from multiply would world-lines of marginally bound D-particles. This, and other clues, lead to a conjectured SL(2, Z) completion of the R4 terms which suggests that they are not renormalized by perturbative corrections in the zero-instanton sector beyond one-loop. The string theory unit-charged D-instanton gives rise to point-like effects in fixed-angle scattering, raising unresolved issues concerning distance scales in superstring theory.

One loop in eleven dimensions

Four-graviton scattering in eleven-dimensional supergravity is considered at one loop compactified on one, two and three-dimensional tori. The dependence on the toroidal geometry determines the known perturbative and non-perturbative terms in the corresponding processes in type II superstring theories in ten, nine and eight dimensions. The ultra-violet divergence must be regularized so that it has a precisely determined finite value that is consistent both with T-duality in nine dimensions and with eleven-dimensional supersymmetry.

Space - like branes

Scalar field theories with appropriate potentials in Minkowski space can have time-dependent classical solutions containing topological defects which correspond to S-branes-i.e. branes all of whose tangential dimensions are spacelike. It is argued that such S-branes arise in string theory as time-dependent solutions of the worldvolume tachyon field of an unstable D-brane or D-brane-anti-D-brane pair. Using the known coupling of the spacetime RR fields to the worldvolume tachyon it is shown that these S-branes carry a charge, defined as the integral of a RR field strength over a sphere (containing a time as well as spatial dimensions) surrounding the S-brane. This same charge is carried by SD-branes, i.e. Dirichlet branes arising from open string worldsheet conformal field theories with a Dirichlet boundary condition on the timelike dimension. The corresponding SD-brane boundary state is constructed. Supergravity solutions carrying the same charges are also found for a few cases.

Light cone supersymmetry and d-branes

Abstract D-brane boundary states for type II superstrings are constructed by enforcing the conditions that preserve half of the space-time supersymmetry. A light-cone coordinate frame is used where time is identified as one of the coordinates transverse to the branes (euclidean) world-volume so that the p -brane is treated as a ( p + 1)-instanton. The boundary states have the superspace interpretation of top or bottom states in a light-cone string superfield. The presence of a non-trivial open-string boundary condensate give rise to the familiar D-brane source terms that determine the (linearized) Born-Infeld-like effective actions for p -branes and the (linearized) equations of motion for the massless fields implied by the usual p -brane ansatze. The ‘energy’ due to closed string exchange between separate D-branes is calculated (to lowest order in the string coupling) in situations with pairs of parallel, intersecting as well as orthogonal branes - in which case the unbroken supersymmetry may be reduced. Configurations of more than two branes are also considered in situations in which the supersymmetry is reduced to 1 8 or 1 16 of the full amount. The Ward identities resulting from the non-linearly realized broken space-time supersymmetry in the presence of a D-brane are also discussed.

Higher Spin Black Holes

We study classical solutions of three dimensional higher spin gravity in the Chern-Simons formulation. We find solutions that generalize the BTZ black hole and carry spin-3 charge. The black hole entropy formula yields a result for the asymptotic growth of the partition function at finite spin-3 chemical potential. Along the way, we develop technology for computing AdS/CFT correlation functions involving higher spin operators.

Time - like boundary Liouville theory

The timelike boundary Liouville (TBL) conformal field theory consisting of a negative norm boson with an exponential boundary interaction is considered. TBL and its close cousin, a positive norm boson with a non-hermitian boundary interaction, arise in the description of the

S brane solutions in supergravity theories

c=1

Spacetime geometry in higher spin gravity

accumulation point of

A dilatonic deformation of AdS5 and its field theory dual

c<1

Exact half-BPS Type IIB interface solutions. I. Local solution and supersymmetric Janus

minimal models, as the worldsheet description of open string tachyon condensation in string theory and in scaling limits of superconductors with line defects. Bulk correlators are shown to be exactly soluble. In contrast, due to OPE singularities near the boundary interaction, the computation of boundary correlators is a challenging problem which we address but do not fully solve. Analytic continuation from the known correlators of spatial boundary Liouville to TBL encounters an infinite accumulation of poles and zeros. A particular contour prescription is proposed which cancels the poles against the zeros in the boundary correlator