Related papers: Surface Operator, Bubbling Calabi-Yau and AGT Rela…

We revisit the role of loop and surface operators as order parameters for gapped phases of four-dimensional gauge theories. We show that in some cases surface operators are confined, and that this fact can be used to distinguish phases…

We study surface operators in the N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theories with gauge groups SO(n) and Sp(2n). As recently shown by Gukov and Witten these theories have a class of rigid surface operators which are expected to be related by…

Surface operators are nonlocal probes of gauge theories capable of distinguishing phases that are not discernible by the classic Wilson-'t Hooft criterion. We prove that the correlation function of a surface operator with a chiral primary…

We construct new topological theories related to sigma models whose target space is a seven dimensional manifold of G_2 holonomy. We define a new type of topological twist and identify the BRST operator and the physical states. Unlike the…

In this note we make a test of the open topological string version of the OSV conjecture, proposed in hep-th/0504054, in the toric Calabi-Yau manifold $X= O(-3)\to\mathbf{P}^2$ with background D4-branes wrapped on Lagrangian submanifolds.…

We introduce codimension three magnetically charged surface operators in five-dimensional (5d) $\mathcal{N}=1$ supersymmetric gauge on $T^2 \times \mathbb{R}^3$. We evaluate the vacuum expectation values (vevs) of surface operators by…

In this thesis we probe various interactions between toric geometry and string theory. First, the notion of a top was introduced by Candelas and Font as a useful tool to investigate string dualities. These objects torically encode the local…

Brane tilings provide the most general framework in string and M-theory for matching toric Calabi-Yau singularities probed by branes with superconformal fixed points of quiver gauge theories. The brane tiling data consists of a bipartite…

We study the 1/4 BPS geometries corresponding to the 1/4 BPS operators of the dual gauge theory side, in ${\cal N}=4$ SYM. By analyzing asymptotic structure and flux integration of the geometries, we present a mapping between droplet…

This thesis is concerned with the geometry of toroidal orbifolds and their applications in string theory. By resolving the orbifold singularities via blow-ups, one arrives at a smooth Calabi-Yau manifold. The systematic method to do so is…

In this work, we uncover a collection of non invertible topological operators linked to the 0-, 2-, 4- and 6-form symmetries related to the type IIB superstring effective theory. By pinpointing the $\text{SL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$-covariant…

We show that B-model topological strings on local Calabi-Yau threefolds are large N duals of matrix models, which in the planar limit naturally give rise to special geometry. These matrix models directly compute F-terms in an associated N=1…

Non-relativistic charged particles and strings coupled with abelian gauge fields are quantized in a geometric representation that generalizes the Loop Representation. We consider three models: the string in self-interaction through a…

We study four dimensional supersymmetric gauge theory in the presence of surface and point-like defects (blowups) and propose an identity relating partition functions at different values of $\Omega$-deformation parameters…

We study the partition function ${\cal N}=1$ 5D $U(N)$ gauge theory with $g$ adjoint hypermultiplets and show that for massless adjoint hypermultiplets it is equal to the partition function of a two dimensional topological field on a genus…

Recent developments in string theory have revealed a surprising connection between spectral theory and local mirror symmetry: it has been found that the quantization of mirror curves to toric Calabi-Yau threefolds leads to trace class…

We consider certain classes of operators in the exact conformal field theory SL(2,R) x SU(2) x U(1)^4 describing strings in an AdS(3) x S(3) x T4 geometry supported by Neveu--Schwarz 3-form fluxes. This background arises in the near-horizon…

We review recent work which has significantly sharpened our geometric understanding and interpretation of the moduli space of certain $N$=2 superconformal field theories. This has resolved some important issues in mirror symmetry and has…

We analyse topological orbifold conformal field theories on the symmetric product of a complex surface M. By exploiting the mathematics literature we show that a canonical quotient of the operator ring has structure constants given by…

Surface operators in the 6d (2,0) theory at large $N$ have a holographic description in terms of M2 branes probing the AdS$_7 \times S^4$ M-theory background. The most symmetric, 1/2-BPS, operator is defined over a planar or spherical…