High Energy Physics - Theory
We present a background-independent renormalization framework for one-loop primordial spectra. We apply it to two observables: the scalar-induced tensor spectrum sourced by a minimally coupled spectator field, and the scalar spectrum…
These notes give a cross-dimensional crash course in supersymmetric field theory. The goal is to provide enough common language to recognize the basic setups used in talks and papers, while also working through representative computations…
In this work, we investigate the emergence of dipole ghost structures in gauge theories at both the classical and quantum levels. Traditionally, dipole ghosts are introduced through an auxiliary field $\chi$ satisfying $\Box^2\chi=0$, whose…
Despite riddles, mysteries, and enigmas the theory of elementary particles has not changed for 50 years. We argue that the current paradigm -- Wilsonian quantum field theory -- is inadequate for resolving the puzzles, and should be replaced…
The integration kernels for polylogarithm functions on a compact Riemann surface of arbitrary genus $h$ are shown to close as the surface undergoes a non-separating degeneration to one of genus $h{-}1$. Explicit formulas are obtained for…
We track the chain of dualities relating five-brane webs in Type IIB to M-theory on noncompact Calabi-Yau threefolds, and follow the effect of adding $(p,q)$ seven-branes. T-dualizing along the seven-brane, a junction of D5-branes ending on…
Large-$N$ three dimensional QCD with a level $k$ Chern-Simons term and $N_f$ massless flavours admits $N_f+1$ degenerate vacua. We discuss various aspects of the domain walls that interpolate between those vacua. Using a bosonic dual for…
Massive quantum fields usually mediate Casimir interactions that are exponentially screened beyond their Compton wavelength. We show that an isolated normalizable zero mode in a classical background opens a low-frequency collective channel…
We construct equivariantly closed polyforms for the fluxes and the action of (massive) type IIA and type IIB supergravity directly in ten dimensions. We illustrate applications of our formalism to two distinct classes of solutions in…
We extend the spacetime duality programme of Burgess \textit{et.al.} to massive theories in 1+1 dimensions. For the massive scalar, a heat-kernel computation tracking three contributions to the conformal-mode effective action reveals that…
We study the multidimensional erratic structure of correlation functions produced by local operator quenches in finite-volume free massive scalar field theory in dimensions 2 and 3. The basic observable is the subtracted equal-time…
We study the low-impact-parameter bootstrap for gravitational effective field theories (EFTs) using the stringy dispersion relation (SDR). After incorporating eikonal spectral support, we ask where the residual spectrum is supported in…
We propose a systematic framework for constructing six-dimensional supergravity theories with eight supercharges that respect all known consistency constraints, including anomaly cancellation and the non-perturbative ${\it H}$-string…
We provide a new formal extension of the BFSS matrix model by an additional 5-bracket. Maximal supersymmetry leads us to promote the BFSS 2-bracket structure constants to a dynamical field governed by a Chern-Simons-like kinetic term, as…
Large charged black holes can create macroscopic, locally weakly curved regions in which moduli take values different from their asymptotic values. We study how robust this mechanism is once the scalar has a nontrivial potential. In…
Due to the exponential growth in the number of terms, computing $\alpha'$-corrections to string theory's low-energy effective actions is a challenging matter. In order to fix all the couplings, one has usually to deal with a large number of…
In this paper we will examine if nonlocal quantum field theory will suffer from the fermion doubling pathology. We find that for a nonlocal Dirac theory, that no additional fermion species are introduced. This is provided that the form…
We give a geometric derivation of Li'enard--Wiechert fields in flat space and in global AdS, emphasizing the origin of antipodal matching. In flat space, the field of a uniformly moving charge is obtained by using coordinates centered on…
I construct the Type-IIB axion--dilaton wormhole partition function from charge-sector data. In a chosen axion charge, equivalently form-field flux sector, the long-distance saddle calculation supplies a two-end operator term with…
We revisit the old problem of analytically continuing QFTs to fractional dimension $d\in\mathbb C$. We observe that common theories like QCD and QED have branch cuts in the complex $d$ plane. In particular, many operators in their…