Related papers: Physics of Infinite Complex Structure Limits in ei…
We study compactifications of the 6d E-string theory, the theory of a small E_8 instanton, to four dimensions. In particular we identify N=1 field theories in four dimensions corresponding to compactifications on arbitrary Riemann surfaces…
We consider the conditions necessary for obtaining perturbative maximal supergravity in d dimensions as a decoupling limit of type II superstring theory compactified on a (10 -- d)-torus. For dimensions d = 2 and d = 3 it is possible to…
Is the Universe (a spatial section thereof) finite or infinite? Knowing the global geometry of a Friedmann-Lema\^{\i}tre (FL) universe requires knowing both its curvature and its topology. A flat or hyperbolic (``open'') FL universe is {\em…
Eight-dimensional nongeometric heterotic strings were constructed as duals of F-theory on $\Lambda^{1,1}\oplus E_8\oplus E_7$ lattice polarized K3 surfaces by Malmendier and Morrison. We study the structure of the moduli space of this…
We study limits of infinite distance in the moduli space of 4d $\mathcal{N} = 2$ string compactifications, in which instanton effects dominate. We first consider trajectories in the hypermultiplet moduli space of type IIB Calabi-Yau…
Given a $2k$-dimensional symplectic space $(Z,F)$ in $N$ variables, $1 < 2k \leq N$, over a global field $K$, we prove the existence of a symplectic basis for $(Z,F)$ of bounded height. This can be viewed as a version of Siegel's lemma for…
We discuss the structure of charged matter couplings in 4-dimensional F-theory compactifications. Charged matter is known to arise from M2-branes wrapping fibral curves on an elliptic or genus-one fibration Y. If a set of fibral curves…
Experimental limits on the violation of four-dimensional Lorentz invariance imply that noncommutativity among ordinary spacetime dimensions must be small. In this talk, I review the most stringent bounds on noncommutative field theories and…
By combining swampland conjectures with observational data, it was recently suggested that the cosmological hierarchy problem (i.e. the smallness of the dark energy in Planck units) could be understood as an asymptotic limit in field space,…
The ground state of string theory may lie at a point of ``maximally enhanced symmetry", at which all of the moduli transform under continuous or discrete symmetries. This hypothesis, along with the hypotheses that the theory at high…
We investigate swampland conjectures for quantum gravity in the context of M-theory compactified on Calabi-Yau threefolds which admit infinite sequences of flops. Naively, the moduli space of such compactifications contains paths of…
We describe three previously unnoticed components of the moduli space of minimally supersymmetric string theories in $d\geq 7$, describing in some detail their spectrum and duality properties. We find a new component in nine and eight…
It is an important question in string compactification whether complex structure moduli stabilization inevitably ends up with a vacuum expectation value of the superpotential < W > of the order of the Planck scale cubed. Any thoughts on…
We investigate the swampland distance conjecture in higher-spin gravity. To this end, we study multicritical generalizations of large-$N$ vector models, bosonic and fermionic, and we compute the quantum information distance along selected…
K-Theory for hermitian symmetric spaces of non-compact type, as developed recently by the authors, allows to put Cartan's classification into a homological perspective. We apply this method to the case of inductive limits of finite…
The primary purpose of these lecture notes is to explore the moduli space of type IIA, type IIB, and heterotic string compactified on a K3 surface. The main tool which is invoked is that of string duality. K3 surfaces provide a fascinating…
We study supervertices in six dimensional (2,0) supergravity theories, and derive supersymmetry non-renormalization conditions on the 4- and 6-derivative four-point couplings of tensor multiplets. As an application, we obtain exact…
We consider flux compactifications of type IIB string theory and F-theory in which the respective superpotentials at large complex structure are dominated by cubic or quartic terms in the complex structure moduli. In this limit, the…
We show that compactifications of the heterotic string on a circle exhibit at the boundary of moduli space ($R\to 0$, or equivalently the decompactification limit $R \to \infty$) a tower of winding or momentum modes that enhance the $E_8…
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…