Related papers: G-structures and Superstrings from the Worldsheet
We consider Minkowski compactifications of M-theory on generic seven-dimensional manifolds. After analyzing the conditions on the four-form flux, we establish a set of relations between the components of the intrinsic torsion of the…
This review talk focusses on some of the interesting developments in the area of superstring compactification that have occurred in the last couple of years. These include the discovery that ``mirror symmetric" pairs of Calabi--Yau spaces,…
We study M-theory compactified on a specific class of seven-dimensional manifolds with SU(3) structure. The manifolds can be viewed as a fibration of an arbitrary Calabi-Yau threefold over a circle, with a U-duality twist around the circle.…
Motivated by the description of $\mathcal{N}=1$ M-theory compactifications to four-dimensions given by Exceptional Generalized Geometry, we propose a way to geometrize the M-theory fluxes by appropriately relating the compactification space…
The moduli dependence of $(2,2)$ superstring compactifications based on Calabi--Yau hypersurfaces in weighted projective space has so far only been investigated for Fermat-type polynomial constraints. These correspond to Landau-Ginzburg…
We discuss chiral supersymmetric compactifications of the SO(32) heterotic string on Calabi-Yau manifolds equipped with direct sums of stable bundles with structure group U(n). In addition we allow for non-perturbative heterotic…
We outline a general geometric structure that underlies the N=1 superpotentials of a certain class of flux and brane configurations in type II string compactifications on Calabi-Yau threefolds. This ``holomorphic N=1 special geometry'' is…
We study limits of four-dimensional type II Calabi-Yau compactifications with vanishing four-cycle singularities, which are dual to $\IT^2$ compactifications of the six-dimensional non-critical string with $E_8$ symmetry. We define proper…
We provide the first explicit example of Type IIB string theory compactification on a globally defined Calabi-Yau threefold with torsion which results in a four-dimensional effective theory with a non-Abelian discrete gauge symmetry. Our…
We derive the three-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=1$ effective theories obtained by compactifying all five ten-dimensional string theories on generic seven-dimensional manifolds with $G_2$ structure. The resulting flux compactifications are…
Complimentary geometric and non-geometric consistent reductions of IIB supergravity are studied. The geometric reductions on the identified group manifold X are found to have a gauge symmetry with Lie algebroid structure, generalising that…
These notes contain a brief introduction to the construction of toric Calabi--Yau hypersurfaces and complete intersections with a focus on issues relevant for string duality calculations. The last two sections can be read independently and…
This paper investigates the algebraic structure that exists on perturbative BPS-states in the superstring, compactified on the product of a circle and a Calabi-Yau fourfold. This structure was defined in a recent article by Harvey and…
For a given complex n-fold M we present an explicit construction of all complex (n+1)-folds which are principal holomorphic T2-fibrations over M. For physical applications we consider the case of M being a Calabi-Yau 2-fold. We show that…
We study compactifications of F-theory on certain Calabi--Yau threefolds. We find that $N=2$ dualities of type II/heterotic strings in 4 dimensions get promoted to $N=1$ dualities between heterotic string and F-theory in 6 dimensions. The…
We show how the full holomorphic geometry of local Calabi-Yau threefold compactifications with N=1 supersymmetry can be obtained from matrix models. In particular for the conifold geometry we relate F-terms to the general amplitudes of c=1…
We clarify certain important issues relevant for the geometric interpretation of a large class of N = 2 superconformal theories. By fully exploiting the phase structure of these theories (discovered in earlier works) we are able to clearly…
A large class of new 4-D superstring vacua with non-trivial/singular geometries, spacetime supersymmetry and other background fields (axion, dilaton) are found. Killing symmetries are generic and are associated with non-trivial dilaton and…
The exceptional holonomy groups are G2 in 7 dimensions, and Spin(7) in 8 dimensions. Riemannian manifolds with these holonomy groups are Ricci-flat. This is a survey paper on exceptional holonomy, in two parts. Part I introduces the…
The mathematical features of a string theory compactification determine the physics of the effective four-dimensional theory. For this reason, understanding the mathematical structure of the possible compactification spaces is of profound…