Related papers: Lectures on the Plane-Wave String/Gauge Theory Dua…

These lecture notes begin with a review of the first nonleading contributions to the derivative expansion of the M theory effective action compactified on a two-torus. The form of these higher-derivative interactions is shown to follow from…

In a previous paper we observed that (classical) tree-level gauge theory amplitudes can be rearranged to display a duality between color and kinematics. Once this is imposed, gravity amplitudes are obtained using two copies of gauge-theory…

A well-known connection between n strings winding around a circle and permutations of n objects plays a fundamental role in the string theory of large N two dimensional Yang Mills theory and elsewhere in topological and physical string…

We study N=1 gauge theories obtained by adding finite mass terms to N=4 Yang-Mills theory. The Maldacena dual is nonsingular: in each of the many vacua, there is an extended brane source, arising from Myers' dielectric effect. The source…

We analyze the classical and quantum vacua of 2d $\mathcal{N}=(8,8)$ supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory with $SU(N)$ and $U(N)$ gauge group, describing the worldvolume interactions of $N$ parallel D1-branes with flat transverse directions…

In these lectures we discuss various aspects of gauge theories with extended $N=2$ and $N=4$ supersymmetry that are at the basis of recently found exact results. These results include the exact calculation of the low energy effective action…

We exhibit the gauge-group independence (``universality'') of all normalized non-intersecting Wilson loop expectation values in the large N limit of two-dimensional Yang-Mills theory. This universality is most easily understood via the…

We show that five-dimensional anti de-Sitter space remains a solution to low-energy type IIB supergravity when the leading higher-derivative corrections to the classical supergravity (which are non-perturbative in the string coupling) are…

We use freely acting asymmetric orbifolds of type IIB string theory to construct a class of theories in four dimensions with eight supercharges. Their low energy effective field theories resemble $STU$ models, but have different duality…

Scattering amplitudes in planar N=4 super Yang-Mills theory reveal a remarkable symmetry structure. In addition to the superconformal symmetry of the Lagrangian of the theory, the planar amplitudes exhibit a dual superconformal symmetry.…

We use semiclassical method to study closed strings in the modified AdS_5*S^5 background with constant B-fields. The point-like closed strings and the streched closed strings rotating around the big circle of S^5 are considered.…

Two dimensional gauge theories with charged matter fields are useful toy models for studying gauge theory dynamics, and in particular for studying the duality of large $N$ gauge theories to perturbative string theories. A useful starting…

We study confining strings in ${\cal{N}}=1$ supersymmetric $SU(N_c)$ Yang-Mills theory in the semiclassical regime on $\mathbb{R}^{1,2} \times \mathbb{S}^1$. Static quarks are expected to be confined by double strings composed of two domain…

Exploiting insights on strings moving in pp-wave backgrounds, we show how open strings emerge from N = 4 SU(M) Yang-Mills theory as fluctuations around certain states carrying R-charge of order M. These states are dual to spherical…

We try to draw lessons for higher dimensions from the string representations recently derived for large $N$ Yang-Mills theory by Gross and Taylor, Kostov, and others, and call attention to three characteristics that should be expected of a…

We describe the constraints imposed on quantum maximal supergravity theories in perturbation theory by the two duality frameworks: S-duality in superstring theory and the AdS/CFT holographic correspondence between IIB superstring theory and…

By considering N=2 string amplitudes we determine the (2+2)-dimensional target space action for the physical degrees of freedom: self-dual gravity and self-dual Yang-Mills, together with their respective infinite towers of higher-spin…

This thesis consists of two parts. The first part deals with gauge/gravity duality in the context of anti de Sitter (AdS) spacetimes with de Sitter (dS) boundary, which can be used to study issues concerning strongly coupled field theory on…

Recently, Witten proposed a topological string theory in twistor space that is dual to a weakly coupled gauge theory. In this lectures we will discuss aspects of the twistor string theory. Along the way we will learn new things about…

We study a class of near-BPS operators for a complex 2-parameter family of N=1 superconformal Yang-Mills theories that can be obtained by a Leigh-Strassler deformation of N=4 SYM theory. We identify these operators in the large N and large…