Related papers: Large N 2D Yang-Mills Theory and Topological Strin…
We derive a topological action that describes the confining phase of (Super-)Yang-Mills theories with gauge group $SU(N)$, similar to the work recently carried out by Seiberg and collaborators. It encodes all the Aharonov-Bohm phases of the…
We reinterpret U(N) Chern-Simons-Witten theory quantized on a torus as a free fermion system. Its Hilbert space and some observables are simply related to those of group quantum mechanics, even at finite N and k. Its large N limit can be…
What is the meaning of entanglement in a theory of extended objects such as strings? To address this question we consider the spatial entanglement between two intervals in the Gross-Taylor model, the string theory dual to two-dimensional…
We discuss the possible applications of string theory for the construction of generalizations of the $SU(3)\times SU(2)\times U(1)$ standard model of strong and electroweak interactions. This includes an investigation of effective $d=4$…
We derive the four dimensional N=1/2 super Yang-Mills theory from tree-level computations in RNS open string theory with insertions of closed string Ramond-Ramond vertices. We also study instanton configurations in this gauge theory and…
We study certain properties of six-dimensional tensionless E-strings (arising from zero size $E_8$ instantons). In particular we show that $n$ E-strings form a bound string which carries an $E_8$ level $n$ current algebra as well as a…
General string-theoretic considerations suggest that four-dimensional large-N gauge theories should have dual descriptions in terms of two-dimensional conformal field theories. However, for non-supersymmetric confining theories such as pure…
The counting of microstates of BPS black-holes on local Calabi-Yau of the form ${\mathcal O}(p-2)\oplus{\mathcal O}(-p) \longrightarrow S^2$ is explored by computing the partition function of q-deformed Yang-Mills theory on $S^2$. We…
In this paper we show that a particular twist of $\mathcal{N}=4$ super Yang-Mills in three dimensions with gauge group SU(2) possesses a set of classical vacua corresponding to the space of flat connections of the {\it complexified} gauge…
We study large-N double-scaling limits of U(N) gauge theories in four dimensions. We focus on theories in a partially confining phase where an abelian subgroup $\hat{G}$ of the gauge group remains unconfined. Double-scaling is defined near…
We embed the large N Chern-Simons/topological string duality in ordinary superstrings. This corresponds to a large $N$ duality between generalized gauge systems with N=1 supersymmetry in 4 dimensions and superstrings propagating on…
The free energy in the weak-coupling phase of two-dimensional Yang-Mills theory on a sphere for SO(N) and Sp(N) is evaluated in the 1/N expansion using the techniques of Gross and Matytsin. Many features of Yang-Mills theory are universal…
String theory provides the only consistent framework so far that unifies all interactions including gravity. We discuss gravity and cosmology in string theory. Conventional notions from general relativity like geometry, topology etc. are…
Little String Theory (LST) is a still somewhat mysterious theory that describes the dynamics near a certain class of time-like singularities in string theory. In this paper we discuss the topological version of LST, which describes…
We propose a string-theoretic ansatz describing the dynamics of SU(N) Yang-Mills theories in the limit of large N in D=4. The construction uses in a crucial way open-string vertex operators that describe non-perturbative brane dynamics.…
We study the relationship between M theory on a nearly lightlike circle and U(N) gauge theory in p+1 dimensions. We define large N limits of these theories in which low energy supergravity is valid. The regularity of these limits implies an…
Yang-Mills theories in 2+1 (or 3) dimensions are interesting as nontrivial gauge theories in their own right and as effective theories of QCD at high temperatures. I shall review the basics of our Hamiltonian approach to this theory,…
This contribution gives a personal view on recent attempts to find a unified framework for non-perturbative string theories, with special emphasis on the hidden symmetries of supergravity and their possible role in this endeavor. A…
An interpretation of spacelike singularities in string theory uses target space duality to relate the collapsing Schwarzschild geometry near the singularity to an inflationary cosmology in dual variables. An appealing picture thus results…
We show that little string theory on S^5 can be obtained as double-scaling limits of the maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills theories on RxS^2 and RxS^3/Z_k. By matching the gauge theory parameters with those in the gravity duals found by…