Related papers: An Invitation to Higher Gauge Theory
Duality groups of Abelian gauge theories on four manifolds and their reduction to two dimensions are considered. The duality groups include elements that relate different space-times in addition to relating different gauge-coupling…
Higher gauge theories play a prominent role in the construction of 4d topological invariants and have been long ago proposed as a tool for 4d quantum gravity. The Yetter lattice model and its continuum counterpart, the BFCG theory,…
Higher gauge theory for non-abelian structure 2-groups faces significant challenges when extending beyond the fake-flat sector, which suffers from limited applicability in physical models. A promising resolution involves equipping 2-groups…
We consider Yang-Mills theory with $N=2$ super translation group in $d=10$ auxiliary dimensions as the structure group. The gauge theory is defined on a direct product manifold $\Sigma_2\times H^2$, where $\Sigma_2$ is a two-dimensional…
Gauge theories admit a generalisation in which the gauge group is replaced by a finer algebraic structure, known as a 2-group. The first model of this type is a Topological Quantum Field Theory introduced by Yetter. We discuss a common…
General Relativity can be reformulated as a diffeomorphism invariant gauge theory of the Lorentz group, with Lagrangian of the type $f(F\wedge F)$, where $F$ is the curvature 2-form of the spin connection. A theory from this class with a…
The most general gauge-invariant marginal deformation of four-dimensional abelian BF-type topological field theory is studied. It is shown that the deformed quantum field theory is topological and that its observables compute, in addition…
When discussing the gauge symmetries of any theory, the Henneaux-Teitelboim transformations are often underappreciated or even completely ignored, due to their on-shell triviality. Nevertheless, these gauge transformations play an important…
Formulating gauge theories for gauge groups admitting a continuous center can require to include charged scalars to define a gauge-coupling function. We show that the gauge-fields in the center can be dualized into form-fields of…
We consider properties of confining strings in 2+1 dimensional SU(2) nonabelian gauge theory with the Higgs field in adjoint representation. The analysis is carried out in the context of effective dual Lagrangian which describes the…
We study the dynamics of strings by means of a distribution function f(A, B, x, t) defined on a 9+1D phase space, where A and B are the correlation vectors of right- and left-moving waves. We derive a transport equation (an analogous to…
In addition to being a prime candidate for a fundamental unified theory of all interactions in nature, string theory provides a natural setting to understand gauge field theories. This is linked to the concept of "D-branes": extended,…
We construct type II A brane configuration of N=(4,4) supersymmetric two dimensional gauge theory with gauge group U(1) and N_f hypermultiplets in the fundamental representation. By lifting to M-theory (strong coupling), we can see the…
A world-sheet sigma model approach is applied to string theories dual to four-dimensional gauge theories, and semi-classical soliton solutions representing highly excited string states are identified which correspond to gauge theory…
We review work on `decomposition,' a property of two-dimensional theories with 1-form symmetries and, more generally, d-dimensional theories with (d-1)-form symmetries. Decomposition is the observation that such quantum field theories are…
We derive curvature counterterms in two-dimensional gravity coupled to conformal matter up to infinite order. By construction the higher-order action is equivalent to a finite first-order theory with auxiliary scalar. Due to this…
A non-abelian generalisation of a theory of gravity coupled to a 2-form gauge field and a dilaton is found, in which the metric and 3-form field strength are Lie algebra-valued. In the abelian limit, the curvature with torsion is self-dual…
We present a non-relativistic fermionic field theory in 2-dimensions coupled to external gauge fields. The singlet sector of the $c=1$ matrix model corresponds to a specific external gauge field. The gauge theory is one-dimensional (time)…
Two different mechanisms exist in non-perturbative String / M- theory for enhanced SU(N) (SO(2N)) gauge symmetries. It can appear in type IIA string theory or M-theory near an $A_{N-1}$ (D_N) type singularity where membrnes wrapped around…
Dense distributions of string-like objects in material media are considered in terms of continuum field theory. The strings are assumed to carry a quantized abelian topological charge, such as the Burgers vector of dislocations in solids or…