Related papers: The Feynman $i \epsilon$ in String Theory
This is a technical note on the $i\epsilon$ prescription in cosmology where we consider a self-interacting scalar field in the Poincare patch of the de Sitter space whose Hamiltonian has explicit time dependence. We use both path integral…
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…
Scattering amplitudes in a range of quantum field theories can be computed using the Cachazo-He-Yuan (CHY) formalism. In theories with colour ordering, the key ingredient is the so-called Parke-Taylor factor. In this note we give a fully…
A formulation of Einstein gravity, analogous to that for gauge theory arising from the Chalmers-Siegel action, leads to a perturbation theory about an asymmetric weak coupling limit that treats positive and negative helicities differently.…
Besides the string scale, string theory has no parameter except some quantized flux values; and the string theory Landscape is generated by scanning over discrete values of all the flux parameters present. We propose that a typical…
Is string theory uniquely determined by self-consistency? Causality and unitarity seemingly permit a multitude of putative deformations, at least at the level of two-to-two scattering. Motivated by this question, we initiate a systematic…
It is argued that the complete S-matrix of string theory at tree level in a flat background can be obtained from a small set of target space properties, without recourse to the worldsheet description. The main non-standard inputs are…
Arguably the simplest model of a cosmological singularity in string theory, the Lorentzian orbifold $\Real^{1,1}/boost$ is known to lead to severe divergences in scattering amplitudes of untwisted states, indicating a large backreaction…
Predicting signatures of string theory on cosmological observables is not sufficient. Often the observable effects string theory may impact upon the cosmological arena may equally be predicted by features of inflationary physics. The…
This essay presents a critical evaluation of the concepts of string theory and its impact on particle physics. The point of departure is a historical review of four decades of string theory within the broader context of six decades of…
Some of the properties of string theory defined on world-sheets with boundaries are reviewed. Particular emphasis is put on the possibility of identifying string configurations (\lq D-instantons' and \lq D-branes') that give rise to stringy…
The fundamental string length, which is an essential part of string theory, explicitly breaks scale invariance. However, in field theory we demonstrated recently that the gravitational constant, which is directly related to the string…
String and field theory ideas have greatly influenced each other since the so called second string revolution. We review this interrelation paying particular attention to its phenomenological implications. Our guiding principle is the…
We study integrals appearing in one-loop amplitudes in string theory, and in particular their analytic continuation based on a string theoretic analog of the $i\varepsilon$-prescription of quantum field theory. For various zero- and…
The magnitude of the Fayet-Iliopoulos term is calculated for compactifications of Type-I string theory and Horava-Witten M-theory in which there exists a pseudo-anomalous U(1)_X. Contrary to various conjectures, it is found that in leading…
We calculate field theory loop amplitudes by string methods, applied to half-maximal 4-point one-loop graviton amplitudes. Infrared divergences are regulated similarly to soft-collinear effective field theory (SCET): new mass scales are…
Feynman diagrams are the foremost tool in the perturbative study of quantum field theory. In gauge theories, the full potential of this tool is revealed when it is combined with the Slavanov-Taylor identities associated with the local gauge…
These notes on string theory are based on a series of talks I gave during my graduate studies. As the talks, this introductory essay is intended for young students and non-string theory physicists.
A quantum equivalence principle is formulated by means of a gravitational phase operator which is an element of the Poincare group. This is applied to the spinning cosmic string which suggests that it may, but not necessarily, contain…
When using dimensional regularization/reduction the epsilon-dimensional numerator of the 1-loop Feynman diagrams gives rise to rational contributions. I list the set of fundamental rules that allow the extraction of such terms at the…