Related papers: Beyond eta/s = 1/4pi
String theory contains solutions with SL(2,R)_R x U(1)_L-invariant warped AdS3 (WAdS3) factors arising as continuous deformations of ordinary AdS3 factors. We propose that some of these are holographically dual to the IR limits of nonlocal…
Intersecting D-brane models in string theory can naturally support the gauge and matter content of left-right symmetric extensions of the Standard Model with gauge symmetry SU(3)_c x SU(2)_L x SU(2)_R x U(1)_{B-L}. Considering such models…
This is an introductory review of the AdS/CFT correspondence and of the ideas that led to its formulation. We show how comparison of stacks of D3-branes with corresponding supergravity solutions leads to dualities between conformal large…
We provide a cross-check of AdS/CFT and a-charge maximization for a four dimensional $N$=1 SCFT with irrational R-charges. The gauge theory is the low energy effective theory of N D3-branes at the tip of the complex cone over the first del…
The string theory defined by gauging $\W_{\infty/2}$, the sub-algebra of $\W_{\infty}$ generated by the currents of even spin, is discussed. The critical value of the central charge is calculated using zeta-function techniques and shown to…
We study the connection between $N=2$ supersymmetry and a topological bound in a two-Higgs-doublet system with an $SU(2)\times U(1)_Y\times U(1)_{Y^{\prime}}$ gauge group. We derive the Bogomol'nyi equations from supersymmetry…
We consider several aspects of `confining strings', recently proposed to describe the confining phase of gauge field theories. We perform the exact duality transformation that leads to the confining string action and show that it reduces to…
Some model-independent properties of the effective string of gauge field systems in the confining phase , for very large quark separations, are described in terms of two-dimensional conformal field theories. The constraints induced by the…
We discuss the k dependence of the k-string tension sigma_k in SU(N) supersymmetric gluodynamics. As well known, at large N the k-string consists, to leading order, of k noninteracting fundamental strings, so that sigma_k=k sigma_1. We…
We examine the AdS/CFT correspondence when the gauge theory is considered on a compactified space with supersymmetry breaking boundary conditions. We find that the corresponding supergravity solution has a negative energy, in agreement with…
We investigate the high-energy behavior of the scattering amplitudes in the extra dimensional gauge theory where the gauge symmetry is broken by the boundary condition. We study, in particular, the 5-dimensional SU(5) grand unified theory…
We review the relation between Chern-Simons gauge theory and topological string theory on noncompact Calabi-Yau spaces. This relation has made possible to give an exact solution of topological string theory on these spaces to all orders in…
We use gauge/gravity duality to study simultaneously the mass spectrum and the thermodynamics of a generic quasi-conformal gauge theory, specified by its beta function. The beta function of a quasi-conformal theory almost vanishes, and the…
I show how one can use lattice methods to calculate various continuum properties of SU(N) gauge theories; in part to explore old ideas that N=3 might be close to N=infinity. I describe calculations of the low-lying `glueball' mass spectrum,…
We study causality violation in holographic hydrodynamics in the gauge theory/string theory correspondence, focussing on Gauss-Bonnet gravity. The value of the Gauss-Bonnet coupling is related to the difference between the central charges…
The ratio between the shear viscosity and the entropy $\eta/s$ is considered a universal measure of the strength of interactions in quantum systems. This quantity was conjectured to have a universal lower bound $(1/4\pi)\hbar/k_{B}$, which…
In this paper we make further refinements to the duality proposed between N=1 SQCD and certain string (supergravity plus branes) backgrounds, working in the regime of comparable large number of colors and flavors. Using the string theory…
On the basis of allowed local gauge symmetries, the QCD Lagrangian admits a CP-violating term proportional to the topological charge density, commonly referred to as the $\theta$ term. A priori, any value of $\theta$ is consistent with the…
The pressure and the energy density of the $SU(3)$ gauge theory are calculated on lattices with temporal extent $N_\tau = 4$, 6 and 8 and spatial extent $N_\sigma =16$ and 32. The results are then extrapolated to the continuum limit. In the…
The AdS/CFT correspondence is a powerful tool to study the properties of conformal QCD at strong coupling in terms of a higher dimensional dual gravity theory. The power-law falloff of scattering amplitudes in the non-perturbative regime…