Related papers: An M theory Solution to the Hierarchy Problem
In seven dimensions any spin manifold admits an SU(2) structure and therefore very general M-theory compactifications have the potential to allow for a reduction to N=4 gauged supergravity. We perform this general SU(2) reduction and give…
Compactifications of heterotic M-theory are shown to provide solutions to the weak- and axion-scale hierarchy problems as a consequence of warped large extra dimensions. They allow a description that is reminiscent of the so-called…
We find de Sitter and flat space solutions with all moduli stabilized in four dimensional supergravity theories derived from the heterotic and type II string theories, and explain how all the previously known obstacles to finding such…
We revisit the stability of the complex structure moduli in the large volume regime of type-IIB flux compactifications. We argue that when the volume is not exponentially large, such as in K\"ahler uplifted dS vacua, the quantum corrections…
After a short introduction to Matrix theory, we explain how can one generalize matrix models to describe toroidal compactifications of M-theory and the heterotic vacua with 16 supercharges. This allows us, for the first time in history, to…
The mathematical features of a string theory compactification determine the physics of the effective four-dimensional theory. For this reason, understanding the mathematical structure of the possible compactification spaces is of profound…
At the leading order, M-theory admits minimal supersymmetric compactifications if the internal manifold has exceptional holonomy. The inclusion of non-vanishing fluxes in M-theory and string theory compactifications induce a superpotential…
We consider compactifications of M-theory on 7-manifolds in the presence of 4-form fluxes, which leave at least four supercharges unbroken. Supersymmetric vacua admit G-structures and we discuss the cases of G_2-, SU(3)- as well as…
We construct flux-stabilised IIB compactifications whose extra dimensions (EDs) have very different sizes, and use these to describe several vacua with a TeV string scale. Because we can access regimes where 2 dimensions are hierarchically…
We present the study of type II A flux vacua and their M-theory duals for compactification on a class of Calabi-Yau orientifolds. The Kaehler potential is derived from toroidal compactifications and the superpotential contains a…
We develop methods to study the singularities of certain $G_2$ cones related to toric hyperkahler spaces and Einstein selfdual orbifolds. This allows us to determine the low energy gauge groups of chiral N=1 compactifications of M-theory on…
While M- and F-theory compactifications describe a much larger class of vacua than perturbative string compactifications, they typically need singularities to generate non-abelian gauge fields and charged matter. The physical explanation…
In this paper we study M-theory compactifications on seven-dimensional manifolds with SU(3) structure. As such manifolds naturally pick out a specific direction, the resulting effective theory can be cast into a form which is similar to…
We examine heterotic M-theory compactified on a Calabi-Yau manifold with an additional parallel M5 brane. The dominant non-perturbative effect stems from open membrane instantons connecting the M5 with the boundaries. We derive the…
We consider the possibility that the gauge hierarchy is a byproduct of the metastability of the electroweak vacuum, i.e., that whatever mechanism is responsible for the latter also sets the running Higgs mass to a value smaller than its…
We show that type I string theory compactified in four dimensions in the presence of constant internal magnetic fields possesses N=1 supersymmetric vacua, in which all Kahler class and complex structure closed string moduli are fixed.…
At the leading order, M-theory admits minimal supersymmetric compactifications if the internal manifold has exceptional holonomy. Once we take into account higher order quantum correction terms in the low energy effective action, the…
In this thesis, we explore two approaches to string phenomenology. In the first half of the work, we investigate M-theory compactifications on spaces with co-dimension four, orbifold singularities. We construct M-theory on C^2/Z_N by…
We study the rational homology of the Deligne--Mumford compactification $\overline{\mathcal M}_{g,n}$ of the moduli space of stable curves via a family of Morse functions, namely the $\text{sys}_T$ functions. Exploiting the geometric and…
We study the problem of moduli stabilisation in explicit heterotic orbifold compactifications, whose spectra contain the MSSM plus some vector-like exotics that can be decoupled. Considering all the bulk moduli, we obtain the 4D low energy…