Related papers: Supersymmetry and the Supergravity Landscape
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…
All the supersymmetric configurations of pure, ungauged, N=4,d=4 supergravity are classified in a formalism that keeps manifest the S and T dualities of the theory. We also find simple equations that need to be satisfied by the…
After reviewing the cosmological constant problem - why is Lambda not huge? - I outline the two basic approaches that had emerged by the late 1980s, and note that each made a clear prediction. Precision cosmological experiments now indicate…
We analyse geometric type IIA flux compactifications leading to N=4 gauged supergravities in four dimensions. The complete landscape of isotropic vacua is presented, which turns out to belong to a unique theory. The solutions admit an…
In a recent paper [1] we showed that N=1 supersymmetric QCD in the presence of certain superpotential deformations has a rich landscape of supersymmetric and non-supersymmetric vacua. In this paper we embed this theory in string theory as a…
We continue the investigation into non-maximally symmetric compactifications of the heterotic string. In particular, we consider compactifications where the internal space is allowed to depend on two or more external directions. For…
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…
An overview is given of the way in which the unification program of particle physics has evolved into the proposal of superstring theory as a prime candidate for unifying quantum gravity with the other forces and particles of nature. A key…
The formalism to determine (conformal) isometries of a given curved superspace was elaborated almost two decades ago in the context of the old minimal formulation for N=1 supergravity in four dimensions (4D). This formalism is universal,…
The space of four dimensional string and $M$ theory vacua with non-Abelian gauge symmetry, chiral fermions and unbroken supersymmetry beyond the electroweak scale appears to be a disconnected space whose different components represent…
The plethora of scalar fields participating in the formulation of a softly broken supersymmetric theory can threat the stability of the standard vacuum. The generic situation is twofold. Directions in scalar field space may exist along…
We investigate the possibility of false vacuum decay in $N=1$ supergravity theories. By establishing a Bogomol'nyi bound for the energy density stored in the domain wall of the $O(4)$ invariant bubble, we show that supersymmetric vacua…
We review recent work in which compactifications of string and M theory are constructed in which all scalar fields (moduli) are massive, and supersymmetry is broken with a small positive cosmological constant, features needed to reproduce…
We study the conditions under which a generic supergravity model involving chiral and vector multiplets can admit vacua with spontaneously broken supersymmetry and realistic cosmological constant. We find that the existence of such viable…
We discuss one of the generic spacetime consequences of having (1,0) worldsheet supersymmetry in tachyon-free string theory, namely the appearance of a ``misaligned supersymmetry'' in the corresponding spacetime spectrum. Misaligned…
We propose a new guiding principle for phenomenology: special geometry in the vacuum space. New algorithmic methods which efficiently compute geometric properties of the vacuum space of N=1 supersymmetric gauge theories are described. We…
We give a simple tutorial introduction to the Mathematica package STRINGVACUA, which is designed to find vacua of string-derived or inspired four-dimensional N=1 supergravities. The package uses powerful algebro-geometric methods, as…
Motivated by the early discovery of the gigantic landscape of string theory vacua, in recent years people switched direction to try to find constraints on low energy effective field theories from UV-complete descriptions for example quantum…
I examine some non-anthropic approaches to the string landscape. These approaches are based on finding the initial conditions of the universe using the wavefunction of the multiverse to select the most probable vacuum out of this landscape.…
In this lecture I make some educated guesses, about the landscape of string theory vacua. Based on the recent work of a number of authors, it seems plausible that the lanscape is unimaginably large and diverse. Whether we like it or not,…