Related papers: Beyond eta/s = 1/4pi

We use gauge/gravity duality to study the thermodynamics of a generic almost conformal theory, specified by its beta function. Three different phases are identified, a high temperature phase of massless partons, an intermediate…

We theoretically assess the conjecture proposed by Kovtun, Son, and Starinets, stating that the ratio $\eta/s$ of the shear viscosity $\eta$ to the entropy density $s$ has the lower bound as $\eta/s\ge\hbar/(4\pi k_{\mathrm{B}})$. In the…

Gauge theories can be solved exactly slightly away from the supersymmetric (SUSY) limit softly broken by anomaly mediation when the size of SUSY breaking is much smaller than the dynamical scale ($m \ll \Lambda$). We show empirical evidence…

We extend the correspondence between adS-supergravities and superconformal field theories on the adS boundary to a correspondence between gauged supergravities (typically with non-compact gauge groups) and quantum field theories on domain…

This is the content of a set of lectures given at the XIII Jorge Andre Swieca Summer School on Particles and Fields, held in Campos do Jordao, Brazil in January 2005. They intend to be a basic introduction to the topic of gauge/gravity…

We present our preliminary results of SO(2N) gauge theories, approaching the large-N limit. SO(2N) theories may help us to understand QCD at finite chemical potential since there is an orbifold equivalence between SO(2N) and SU(N) gauge…

This dissertation consists of a comprehensive and pedagogical review of Maldacena's original derivation of the AdS/CFT correspondence and the main topics of string theory necessary to understand it. The large $N$ expansion of Yang-Mills…

It is known, since the 70's, that the large N 't Hooft limit of gauge theories is related to string theories. In 1998, J. M. Maldacena identified precisely such a relation: the so-called AdS/CFT correspondence which speculates a duality…

One of the few cases of AdS/CFT where both sides of the duality are under good control relates tensionless $k=1$ strings on AdS$_3$ to a two-dimensional symmetric product CFT. Building on prior observations, we propose an exact duality…

We study the gravity dual of a thermal gauge theory whose behavior parallels that of thermal QCD in the far IR. The UV of our theory has infinite degrees of freedom. We holographically renormalize the supergravity action to compute the…

String theory, if it describes nature, is probably strongly coupled. As a result, one might despair of making any statements about the theory. In the framework of a set of clearly spelled out assumptions, we show that this is not…

There has recently been a surge of new ideas and results for 2+1 dimensional gauge theories. We consider a recently proposed duality for 2+1 dimensional QCD, which predicts a symmetry-breaking phase. Using the F-theorem, we find bounds on…

We discuss supersymmetry breaking mechanism at the level of low energy N=1 effective superstring actions that exhibit $SL(2,Z)_T$ target space modular duality or $SL(2,Z)_S$ strong-weak coupling duality. The allowed superpotential forms use…

We analyze in detail the relation between an exactly marginal deformation of N=4 SYM - the Leigh-Strassler or ``beta-deformation'' - and its string theory dual (recently constructed in hep-th/0502086) by comparing energies of semiclassical…

We explore the relation between positivity of the energy constraints in conformal field theories and causality in their dual gravity description. Our discussion involves CFTs with different central charges whose description, in the gravity…

We study dynamics of two-dimensional non-abelian gauge theories with N=(0,2) supersymmetry that include N=(0,2) supersymmetric QCD and its generalizations. In particular, we present the phase diagram of N=(0,2) SQCD and determine its…

String theory has been initially derived from motivations coming from strong interaction phenomenology,but its application faced deep conceptual and practical difficulties. The strong interactions found their theoretical foundation…

We consider $O(N)$ $g\varphi^4$ theory with the coupling $g$ being large, and calculate shear viscosity to entropy density ratio ($\eta/s$). The final result for $\eta/s$ has a form remarkably similar to that obtained from string theory…

Solving by a canonical string theory, of closed strings for the glueballs and open strings for the mesons, the 't Hooft large-$N$ expansion of QCD is a long-standing problem that resisted all the attempts despite the advent of the…

The string breaking phenomenon in QCD can be studied using the gauge/string duality. In this approach, one can make estimates of some of the string breaking distances at non-zero temperature and baryon chemical potential. These point…