Related papers: Instantons beyond topological theory II

Using the first order formalism (BFYM) of the Yang-Mills theory we show that it displays an embedded topological sector corresponding to the field content of the Topological Yang-Mills theory (TYM). This picture arises after a proper…

We consider a variety of physical systems in which one has states that can be thought of as generalised instantons. These include Yang--Mills theories on manifolds with a torsion-free $G$-structure, analogous gravitational instantons and…

We present a reformulation of general relativity as a `generalized' Yang--Mills theory of gravity, using a SO(3,C) gauge connection and the self-dual Weyl tensor as dynamical variables. This formulation uses Plebanski's theory as the…

We show that the resolution of moduli space of ideal instantons parameterizes the instantons on non-commutative $\IR^{4}$. This moduli space appears as a Higgs branch of the theory of $k$ $D0$-branes bound to $N$ $D4$-branes by the…

It is a long-standing question to extend the definition of 3-dimensional Chern-Simons theory to one which associates values to 1-manifolds with boundary and to 0-manifolds. We provide a solution in case the gauge group is a torus. We also…

We study a statistical model of random plane partitions. The statistical model has interpretations as five-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=1$ supersymmetric SU(N) Yang-Mills on $\mathbb{R}^4\times S^1$ and as K\"ahler gravity on local SU(N)…

We relate the moduli space of Yang-Mills instantons to quaternionic manifolds. For instanton number one, the Wolf spaces play an important role. We apply these ideas to instanton calculations in N=4 SYM theory.

We apply the methods recently developed for computation of type IIA disk instantons using mirror symmetry to a large class of D-branes wrapped over Lagrangian cycles of non-compact Calabi-Yau 3-folds. Along the way we clarify the notion of…

In this paper we consider features of graviton scattering in Matrix theory compactified on a 2-torus. The features which interest us can only be determined by nonperturbative effects in the corresponding 2+1 dimensional super Yang Mills…

In this paper, we present a new formulation of topological conformal gravity in four dimensions. Such a theory was first considered by Witten as a possible gravitational counterpart of topological Yang-Mills theory, but several problems…

We study a class of lattice field theories in two dimensions that includes gauge theories. Given a two dimensional orientable surface of genus $g$, the partition function $Z$ is defined for a triangulation consisting of $n$ triangles of…

The arcane ADHM construction of Yang-Mills instantons can be very naturally understood in the framework of D-brane dynamics in string theory. In this point-of-view, the mysterious auxiliary symmetry of the ADHM construction arises as a…

We explore the correspondence between Yang-Mills instantons and algebraic curves. The curve is defined by Higgs zero locus of dyonic instantons in 1+4 dimensional Yang-Mills-Higgs theory, and it is identified in string theory with the…

We study a system of fractional D3 and D(-1) branes in a Ramond-Ramond closed string background and show that it describes the gauge instantons of N=2 super Yang-Mills theory and their interactions with the graviphoton of N=2 supergravity.…

We present a novel formulation of the instanton equations in 8-dimensional Yang-Mills theory. This formulation reveals these equations as the last member of a series of gauge-theoretical equations associated with the real division algebras,…

Correlation functions of chiral primary operators and their superconformal descendants in the N=4 supersymmetric SU(N) Yang-Mills theory are studied in detail in a one-instanton background and at large N. Whereas earlier calculations were…

We study a topological field theory describing confining phases of gauge theories in four dimensions. It can be formulated on a lattice using a discrete 2-form field talking values in a finite abelian group (the magnetic gauge group). We…

We investigate the differential geometry of the moduli space of instantons on S^3 x S^1. Extending previous results, we show that a sigma-model with this target space can be expected to possess a large N=4 superconformal symmetry,…

Using holography, we study non-perturbative effects in M-theory on orientifolds from the analysis of the S^3 partition functions of dual field theories. We consider the S^3 partition functions of N=4 Yang-Mills theory with O(n) gauge…

We argue that the electromagnetic $\theta$-term is a physical parameter of the Standard Model coupled to gravity. Specifically, in the context of 4-dimensional Einstein-Maxwell theory we show that there exist Euclidean field configurations…