Related papers: Cobordism Classes and the Swampland
So far, none of attempts to quantize gravity has led to a satisfactory model that not only describe gravity in the realm of a quantum world, but also its relation to elementary particles and other fundamental forces. Here, we outline the…
This talk deals with the old problem of formulatingn a covariant quantum theory of superstrings, ``covariant'' here meaning having manifest Lorentz symmetry and supersymmetry. The advantages and disadvantages of several quantization methods…
We discuss the relationship between the Swampland program and QM2-branes, which are supersymmetric M2-branes with discrete spectrum. The worldvolume description of these M2-branes is well-known. The global description is given in terms of…
In this letter we use the Anti-de Sitter/Conformal Field Theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence to establish a set of old conjectures about symmetries in quantum gravity. These are that no global symmetries are possible, that internal gauge…
We point out that the de Sitter swampland conjecture would be falsified if classical fluxed Type IIA orientifold vacua with a single non-BPS D7-brane were indeed part of the string theory landscape. In other words, the dS swampland…
We introduce a formalism based on a combinatorial notion of cell complex subject to an inclusion-reversing duality operation. Our main goal is to open the way for a functorial definition of field theories in a context where no manifold or…
It has recently been conjectured that string theory does not admit de Sitter vacua, and that quintessence explains the current epoch of accelerated cosmic expansion. A proposed, key prediction of this scenario is time-varying couplings in…
We propose to sharpen the weak gravity conjecture by the statement that, except for BPS states in a supersymmetric theory, the gravitational force is strictly weaker than any electric force and provide a number of evidences for this…
The proof that a consistent theory of gravity cannot be constructed in a flat spacetime rests on the {\it assumption} that atoms be equal in every conditions. However special relativity and the principle of equivalence impose that atoms are…
Swampland criteria like the Weak Gravity Conjecture should not only apply to particles, but also to other lower-codimension charged objects in 4d EFTs like strings and membranes. However, the description of the latter is in general subtle…
We propose a unifying mathematical framework describing the higher categorical structures formed by topological defects in quantum field theory equipped with tangential structures, such as orientations, framings, or…
We suggest supersymmetric extension of conformally invariant string theory which is exclusively based on extrinsic curvature action. At the classical level this is a tension-less string theory. The absence of conformal anomaly in quantum…
Four lectures on invertible field theories at the Park City Mathematics Institute 2019. Cobordism categories are introduced both as plain categories and topologically enriched. We then discuss localization of categories and its relationship…
We describe a class of time-dependent solutions in string- or M-theory that are exact with respect to alpha-prime and curvature corrections and interpolate in physical space between regions in which the low energy physics is…
The mathematical formalism for linear quantum field theory on curved spacetime depends in an essential way on the assumption of global hyperbolicity. Physically, what lie at the foundation of any formalism for quantization in curved…
String theory provides the only consistent framework so far that unifies all interactions including gravity. We discuss gravity and cosmology in string theory. Conventional notions from general relativity like geometry, topology etc. are…
General relativity required the abandonment of Euclidean geometry. Here we show that quantum theory requires the abandonment of classical logic. We show that the Hilbert space representation of quantum theory is logically inevitable. There…
We propose swampland criteria for braneworlds viewed as effective field theories of defects coupled to semiclassical gravity. We do this by exploiting their holographic interpretation. We focus on general features of entanglement entropies…
This thesis proposes a framework based on a notion of combinatorial cell complex (cc) whose cells are defined simply as finite sets of vertices. The cells of a cc are subject to four axioms involving a rank function that assigns a rank (or…
This thesis investigates the role of the quantum gravity cut-off for effective field theories (EFTs) coupled to Einstein gravity, with an emphasis on its implications at low energies within the context of the Swampland program. Part I…