Related papers: Modular invariance, misalignment and finiteness in…
The weakly-coupled heterotic string is known to have problems of dilaton/moduli stabilization, supersymmetry breaking (by hidden-sector gaugino condensation), gauge coupling unification (or the Newton's constant), QCD axion, as well as…
We discuss the breakdown of perturbative unitarity of noncommutative quantum field theories in electric-type background in the light of string theory. We consider the analytic structure of string loop two-point functions using a suitable…
Two independent criteria are presented that together guarantee exponential suppression of the two-loop cosmological constant in non-supersymmetric heterotic strings. They are derived by performing calculations in both the full string theory…
Strong - weak coupling duality in string theory allows us to compute physical quantities both at the weak coupling end and at the strong coupling end. Furthermore perturbative string theory can be used to compute corrections to the leading…
A survey of solutions to the cosmological moduli problem in string theory. The only extant proposal which may work is Intermediate Scale Inflation as proposed by Randall and Thomas. Supersymmetry preserving dynamics which could give large…
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…
The perturbative analysis of models of open and closed superstrings presents a number of surprises. For instance, variable numbers of antisymmetric tensors ensure their consistency via generalized Green-Schwarz cancellations and a novel…
We review several mechanisms for supersymmetry breaking in orientifold models. In particular, we focus on non-supersymmetric open-string realisations that correspond to consistent flat-space solutions of the classical equations of motion.…
Modular invariance is a fundamental symmetry in string compactifications, constraining both the structure of the effective theory and the dynamics of moduli and matter fields. It has also gained renewed importance in the context of…
The goal of these lectures is to present an informal but precise introduction to a body of concepts and methods of interest in number theory and string theory revolving around modular forms and their generalizations. Modular invariance lies…
Modular invariance is a striking symmetry in string theory, which may keep stringy corrections under control. In this paper, we investigate a phenomenological consequence of the modular invariance, assuming that this symmetry is preserved…
The divergences that arise in the regularized partition function for closed bosonic string theory in flat space lead to three types of perturbation series expansions, distinguished by their genus dependence. This classification of…
We study general non-supersymmetric heterotic string models, including so-called interpolating models, $d$-dimensionally compactified with the arbitrary number of freely acting $\mathbb{Z}_{2}$ twisted directions. Taking the limits of the…
The Standard Model is the low-energy limit of a microscopic theory which includes extra dimensions and new symmetries. A part of my thesis consisted in constructing a new class of models with two extra dimensions. We showed that these…
In supersymmetric theories, topological defects can have nontrivial behaviors determined purely by whether or not supersymmetry is restored in the defect core. A well-known example of this is that some supersymmetric cosmic strings are…
In this paper we discuss symmetry breaking in string theory. Spacetime symmetries are implemented as inner automorphisms of the underlying superconformal algebra. Conserved currents generate unbroken spacetime symmetries. As we deform the…
In these lectures, recent progress on multiloop superstring perturbation theory is reviewed. A construction from first principles is given for an unambiguous and slice-independent two-loop superstring measure on moduli space for even spin…
The modular invariance of the one-loop partition function of the closed bosonic string in four dimensions in the presence of certain homogeneous exact pp-wave backgrounds is studied. In the absence of an axion field the partition function…
We consider a class of conformal models describing closed strings in axially symmetric stationary magnetic flux tube backgrounds. These models are closed string analogs of the Landau model of a particle in a magnetic field or the model of…
We show that a moduli space of the form predicted by string theory, lifted by supersymmetry breaking, gives rise to successful inflation for large regions of parameter space without any modification or fine tuning. This natural realization…