Related papers: String theory: a perspective over the last 25 year…
We define string geometry: spaces of superstrings including the interactions, their topologies, charts, and metrics. Trajectories in asymptotic processes on a space of strings reproduce the right moduli space of the super Riemann surfaces…
Duality, the equivalence between seemingly distinct quantum systems, is a curious property that has been known for at least three quarters of a century. In the past two decades it has played a central role in mapping out the structure of…
Our current best guess for a unified theory of gravitation and quantum field theory (string theory) generically predicts a set of requirements for a consistently quantized theory, the Swampland criteria. Refined versions of these criteria…
In some string theories, e.g. SO(32) heterotic string theory on Calabi-Yau manifolds, a massless field with a tree level potential can acquire a tachyonic mass at the one loop level, forcing us to quantize the theory around a new background…
Over fourty years ago, the physicist Polyakov proposed a bold framework for string theory, in which the problem was reduced to the study of certain "random surfaces". He further made the tantalising suggestion that this theory could be…
As of today there exist consistent, gauge-invariant string field theories describing all string theories: bosonic open and closed strings, open superstrings, heterotic strings and type II strings. The construction of these theories require…
I review and discuss some recent developments in non-perturbative approaches to quantum gravity, with an emphasis on discrete formulations, and those coming from a classical connection description.
String theory avoids the ultraviolet infinities that arise in trying to quantize gravity. It is also more predictive than conventional quantum field theory, one aspect of this being the way that it contributed to the emergence of the…
We provide a qualitative review of flux compactifications of string theory, focusing on broad physical implications and statistical methods of analysis.
String Theory is the result of the conjunction of three conceptually independent elements: (i) the metaphysical idea of a nomological unity of the forces, (ii) the model-theoretical paradigm of Quantum Field Theory, and (iii) the conflict…
We briefly review three aspects of string cosmology: (1) the ``stochastic'' approach to the pre-big bang scenario, (2) the presence of chaos in the generic cosmological solutions of the tree-level low-energy effective actions coming out of…
We introduce the key ideas behind the group field theory approach to quantum gravity, and the basic elements of its formalism. We also briefly report on some recent results obtained in this approach, concerning both the mathematical…
These lectures are devoted to introducing some of the basic features of quantum geometry that have been emerging from compactified string theory over the last couple of years. The developments discussed include new geometric features of…
This book provides an introduction to string field theory (SFT). String theory is usually formulated in the worldsheet formalism, which describes a single string (first-quantization). While this approach is intuitive and could be pushed far…
The properties of a string-inspired two-dimensional theory of gravity are studied. The post-Newtonian and weak-field approximations, `stellar' structure and cosmological solutions of this theory are developed. Some qualitative similarities…
Over the last twenty years, work based on lattice supersymmetry has generated many new results and insights into the non-perturbative nature of string theory, quantum black holes, and gravity. This endeavor is a broad research program…
String geometry theory is one of the candidates of the non-perturbative formulation of string theory. In arXiv:1709.03506, the perturbative string theory is reproduced from a string geometry model coupled with a $u(1)$ gauge field on string…
We present a string theory realization for the correspondence between quantum integrable models and supersymmetric gauge theories. The quantization results from summing the effects of fundamental strings winding around a compact direction.…
This talk surveys a broad range of applications of quantum field theory, as well as some recent developments. The stress is on the notion of effective field theories. Topics include implications of neutrino mass and a possible small value…
The second string revolution, which begin around 1995, has led to a drastic alteration in our perception of the universe, perhaps even more so then did the first string revolution of 1984. That is, extending 10-dimensional string theory to…