Related papers: Stringy instanton corrections to N=2 gauge couplin…
We review exact results obtained for R^4 couplings in maximally supersymmetric type II string theories. These couplings offer a privileged scene to understand the rules of semiclassical calculus in string theory. Upon expansion in weak…
The study of the special F^4 and R^4 in the effective action for the Spin(32)/Z_2 and type II strings sheds some light on D-brane calculus and on instanton contribution counting. The D-instanton case is discussed separately.
We study non-perturbative D(-1)-instanton corrections to quartic gauge and curvature couplings in 8d type IIB orientifolds, in terms of a one-loop computation of BPS D0-branes in T-dual type I' models. The complete perturbative and…
We argue that one can see a specific class of "stringy" D-instantons in the underlying 4D gauge theory as the UV completion of an ordinary gauge instanton of a completely broken gauge group corresponding to the "empty" cycle the D-instanton…
We study the effects produced by D-brane instantons on the holomorphic quantities of a D-brane gauge theory at an orbifold singularity. These effects are not limited to reproducing the well known contributions of the gauge theory instantons…
We compute threshold effects to gauge couplings in four-dimensional $Z_N$ orientifold models of type I strings with ${\cal N}=2$ and ${\cal N}=1$ supersymmetry, and study their dependence on the geometric moduli. We also compute the…
We derive the non-perturbative corrections to the free energy of the two-matrix model in terms of its algebraic curve. The eigenvalue instantons are associated with the vanishing cycles of the curve. For the (p,q) critical points our…
This is a pedagogical and extended version of the results published in Refs. [1,2] and presented by the authors in various talks during the last year. We discuss the type II D-branes (both regular and fractional) of the orbifold…
We perform a detailed conformal field theory analysis of D2-brane instanton effects in four-dimensional type IIA string vacua with intersecting D6-branes. In particular, we explicitly compute instanton induced fermion two-point couplings…
We study one-loop, moduli-dependent corrections to gauge and gravitational couplings in supersymmetric vacua of the heterotic string. By exploiting their relation to the integrability condition for the associated CP-odd couplings, we derive…
In this paper we discuss some aspects of N=1 type I-heterotic string duality in four dimensions. We consider a particular example of a (weak-weak) dual pair where on the type I side there are only D9-branes corresponding to perturbative…
We consider the compactification of the E8xE8 heterotic string on a K3 surface with "the spin connection embedded in the gauge group" and the dual picture in the type IIA string (or F-theory) on a Calabi-Yau threefold X. It turns out that…
We study the effect of D-instantons on closed string scattering amplitudes in the two-dimensional type 0B string theory from the worldsheet perspective. We find that the contribution from a pair of D-instanton and anti-D-instanton to the…
We show that the moduli space of the $(2,0)$ and little-string theories compactified on $T^3$ with R-symmetry twists is equal to the moduli space of U(1) instantons on a non-commutative $T^4$. The moduli space of $U(q)$ instantons on a…
We study a class of four-dimensional N=1 heterotic string theories which have nontrivial quantum dynamics arising from asymptotically free gauge groups. These models are obtained by orbifolding 4d N=2 heterotic/type II dual pairs by…
We introduce a method of using the a dual type IIA string to compute alpha'-corrections to the moduli space of heterotic string compactifications. In particular we study the hypermultiplet moduli space of a heterotic string on a K3 surface.…
We analyze the process of string vacuum destabilization due to instanton induced superpotential couplings which depend linearly on charged fields. These non-perturbative instabilities result in potentials for the D-brane moduli and lead to…
Based on the recently discovered K-theory description of D-branes in string theory a K-theory interpretation of the topology of gauge conditions for four dimensional gauge theories, in particular 't Hooft abelian projection, is presented.…
We discuss aspects of the heterotic string effective field theories in orbifold constructions of the heterotic string. We calculate the moduli dependence of threshold corrections to gauge couplings in (2,2) symmetric orbifold…
We describe the modern formalism, ideas and applications of the instanton calculus for gauge theories with, and without, supersymmetry. Particular emphasis is put on developing a formalism that can deal with any number of instantons. This…