Related papers: Comments on Quantum Higgs Vacua

We develop a systematic method to describe the moduli space of vacua of four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ class ${\cal S}$ theories including Coulomb branch, Higgs branch and mixed branches. In particular, we determine the Higgs and mixed…

We discuss non-conformal non-supersymmetric large N gauge theories with vanishing vacuum energy density to all orders in perturbation theory. These gauge theories can be obtained via a field theory limit of Type IIB D3-branes embedded in…

String and membrane dynamics may be unified into a theory of 2+2 dimensional self-dual world-volumes living in a 10+2 dimensional target space. Some of the vacua of this M-theory are described by the N=(2,1) heterotic string, whose target…

We consider supersymmetric gauge theories with impurities in various dimensions. These systems arise in the study of intersecting branes. Unlike conventional gauge theories, the Higgs branch of an impurity theory can have compact…

We consider generic properties of the moduli space of vacua in $N=2$ supersymmetric Yang--Mills theory recently studied by Seiberg and Witten. We find, on general grounds, Picard--Fuchs type of differential equations expressing the…

Even though for generic $\mathcal{N}=1$ theories it is not possible to separate distinct branches of supersymmetric vacua, in this paper we study a special class of $\mathcal{N}=1$ SCFTs, these of Class $\mathcal{S}_k$ for which it is…

We analyze $N=2,1,0$ vacua of type IIB string theory on $K3\times T^2/Z_2$ in presence of three-form fluxes from a four dimensional supergravity viewpoint. The quaternionic geometry of the $K3$ moduli space together with the special…

We find the classical supersymmetric vacuum states of a class of N = 1* field theories obtained by mass deforming superconformal models with simple gauge groups and N = 4 or N =2 supersymmetry. In particular, new classical vacuum states for…

We provide several consistency checks of confining dynamics in a recently conjectured holographic dual of a four-dimensional ${\cal N}=1$ supersymmetric gauge theory that flows from a conformal manifold in the UV to a finite set of…

We discuss the general form of quadratic (1,1) supergravity in two dimensions, and show that this theory is equivalent to two scalar supermultiplets coupled to non-trivial supergravity. It is demonstrated that the theory possesses stable…

We present a quantum mechanical model of spherical supermembranes. Using superfields to represent the cartesian coordinates of the membrane, we are able to exactly determine its supersymmetric vacua. We find there are two classical vacua,…

In this article we review four-dimensional string vacua with N=2 space-time supersymmetry. In particular, we will discuss several aspects of the string-string duality between the heterotic string, compactified on $K3\times T^2$, and the…

We consider M-theory in the presence of M parallel M5-branes probing a transverse A_{N-1} singularity. This leads to a superconformal theory with (1,0) supersymmetry in six dimensions. We compute the supersymmetric partition function of…

We investigate the low energy properties of string vacua with spontaneously broken $N=1$ supersymmetry by a dilaton $F$-term. As a consequence of the universal couplings of the dilaton, the supersymmetric mass spectrum is determined in…

We study $(2,2)$ and $(4,4)$ supersymmetric theories with superspace higher derivatives in two dimensions. A characteristic feature of these models is that they have several different vacua, some of which break supersymmetry. Depending on…

We propose correspondences between 4d quantum field theories with N=2,1,0 (super)conformal invariance and Type IIB string theory on various orbifolds. We argue using the spacetime string theory, and check using the beta functions (exactly…

We consider type II string theory compactified on a symmetric T^6/Z_2 orientifold. We study a general class of discrete deformations of the resulting four-dimensional supergravity theory, including gaugings arising from geometric and…

In the first lecture, we derive the five-dimensional effective action of strongly coupled heterotic string theory for the complete (1,1) sector of the theory by performing a reduction, on a Calabi-Yau three-fold, of M-theory on S1/Z2. The…

We use the embedding tensor formalism to analyse maximally symmetric backgrounds of N=2 gauged supergravities which have the full N=2 supersymmetry. We state the condition for N=2 vacua and discuss some of their general properties. We show…

In the recent times a lot of effort has been devoted to improve our knowledge about the space of string theory vacua (``the landscape'') to find statistical grounds to justify how and why the theory selects its vacuum. Particularly…