Related papers: Mapping pure gravity to strings in three-dimension…
We construct two-dimensional supergravity theories endowed with a positive cosmological constant, that admit de Sitter vacua. We consider the cases of $\mathcal{N}=1$ as well as $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetry, and couple the supergravity to…
We investigate the gauging of a three-dimensional deformation of the anti-de Sitter algebra, which accounts for the existence of an invariant energy scale. By means of the Poisson sigma model formalism, we obtain explicit solutions of the…
In the five-dimensional Einstein gravity with negative cosmological constant in the presence/absence of a {\it non-fine-tuned} 3-brane, we have investigated the classical stability of black string solutions which are foliations of…
The aim of these lectures is to give an introduction to several topics which lie at the intersection of string theory, gravity theory and gravity phenomenology. One successively reviews: (i) the "membrane" approach to the dissipative…
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…
Tensionless string theory on $\text{AdS}_3\times\text{S}^3\times\mathcal{M}$ is explored in the limit that the strings wind the asymptotic boundary a large number of times. Although the worldsheet is usually thought to be localised to the…
We discuss aspects of global and gauged symmetries in quantum field theory and quantum gravity, focusing on discrete gauge symmetries. An effective Lagrangian description of $\Z_p$ gauge theories shows that they are associated with an…
We present a bi-metric theory of gravity containing a length scale of galactic size. For distances less than this scale the theory satisfies the standard tests of General Relativity. For distances greater than this scale the theory yields…
Recently, a new framework for solving the hierarchy problem has been proposed which does not rely on low energy supersymmetry or technicolor. The gravitational and gauge interactions unite at the electroweak scale, and the observed weakness…
We consider a generalized three-dimensional theory of gravity which is specified by two fields, the graviton and the dilaton, and one parameter. This theory contains, as particular cases, three-dimensional General Relativity and…
It is believed that gravity will be explained in the framework of the existing quantum theory when one succeeds in eliminating divergencies at large momenta or small distances (although the phenomenon of gravity has been observed only at…
In this paper we provide the criteria for any generally covariant, parity preserving, and torsion free theory of gravity to possess a stable de Sitter (dS) or anti-de Sitter (AdS) background. By stability we mean the absence of tachyonic or…
It is hoped that these lectures will give a point of entry into that vast web of related ideas that go under the name "string theory". I start with a more or less qualitative introduction to gravity as a field theory and sketch how one…
We investigate the f(R) theory of gravity with broken diffeomorphism due to the change of the coefficient in front of the total divergence term in the (3+1)-decomposition of the scalar curvature. We perform the canonical analysis of this…
The AdS/CFT correspondence is an exact duality between string theory in anti-de Sitter space and conformal field theories on its boundary. Inspired in this correspondence some relations between strings and non conformal field theories have…
The correspondence between supergravity (and string theory) on $AdS$ space and boundary conformal field theory relates the thermodynamics of ${\cal N}=4$ super Yang-Mills theory in four dimensions to the thermodynamics of Schwarzschild…
We provide a general method for studying a manifestly covariant formulation of $p$-form gauge theories on the de Sitter space. This is done by stereographically projecting the corresponding theories, defined on flat Minkowski space, onto…
Three-dimensional gravity in Anti-de Sitter space is considered, including torsion. The derivation of the central charges of the algebra that generates the asymptotic isometry group of the theory is reviewed, and a special point of the…
In absence of matter Einstein gravity with a cosmological constant $\La$ can be formulated as a scale-free theory depending only on the dimensionless coupling constant G \Lambda where G is Newton constant. We derive the conformal field…
The configuration space of general relativity is superspace - the space of all Riemannian 3-metrics modulo diffeomorphisms. However, it has been argued that the configuration space for gravity should be conformal superspace - the space of…