Related papers: The SO(32) Heterotic String on a K3 Surface
We demonstrate that type II string theory compactified on a singular Calabi-Yau manifold is related to $c=1$ string theory compactified at the self-dual radius. We establish this result in two ways. First we show that complex structure…
We clarify the relation between six-dimensional Abelian orbifold compactifications of the heterotic string and smooth heterotic K3 compactifications with line bundles for both SO(32) and E_8 x E_8 gauge groups. The T^4/Z_N cases for N=2,3,4…
In discussions of the T-duality between the two heterotic string theories, the duality is actually implemented through the "common" SO(16) x SO(16) subgroup of "SO(32)" and E_8 x E_8. In fact, however, a global investigation shows that no…
We discuss chiral supersymmetric compactifications of the SO(32) heterotic string on Calabi-Yau manifolds equipped with direct sums of stable bundles with structure group U(n). In addition we allow for non-perturbative heterotic…
Four dimensional heterotic SO(32) orbifold models are classified systematically with model building applications in mind. We obtain all Z3, Z7 and Z2N models based on vectorial gauge shifts. The resulting gauge groups are reminiscent of…
A detailed understanding of instanton effects for half-BPS couplings is pursued in theories with 16 supersymmetries. In particular, we investigate the duality between heterotic string on $T^4$ and type IIA on $K_3$ at the $T^4/Z_2$ orbifold…
We derive a map relating the gauge symmetry groups of heterotic strings on $T^4$ to other components of the moduli space with rank reduction. This generalizes the results for $T^2$ and $T^3$ which mirror the singularity freezing mechanism…
We classify potential cosmic strings according to the topological charge measurable outside the string core. We conjecture that in string theory it is this charge that governs the stability of long strings. This would imply that the SO(32)…
We investigate special compactifications of the heterotic string for which the space of half-BPS states is, in a natural way, a representation of various subgroups of the Conway group. These compactifications provide a useful framework for…
We review the construction of open descendants of the type IIB superstring on the Z-orbifold. It results in a chiral four-dimensional model with gauge group $SO(8) \otimes U(12)$ and three generations of matter in the $(8,12^*)\oplus…
We consider the general case of a type IIA string compactified on a Calabi-Yau manifold which has a heterotic dual description. It is shown that the nonabelian gauge symmetries which can appear nonperturbatively in the type II string but…
Eight-dimensional non-geometric heterotic strings with gauge algebra $\mathfrak{e}_8\mathfrak{e}_7$ were constructed by Malmendier and Morrison as heterotic duals of F-theory on K3 surfaces with $\Lambda^{1,1}\oplus E_8\oplus E_7$ lattice…
Phenomenological explorations of heterotic strings have conventionally focused primarily on the E8xE8 theory. We consider smooth compactifications of all three ten-dimensional heterotic theories to exhibit the many similarities between the…
These are notes based on lectures given at TASI99. We review the geometry of the moduli space of N=2 theories in four dimensions from the point of view of superstring compactification. The cases of a type IIA or type IIB string compactified…
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…
In this article we review four-dimensional string vacua with N=2 space-time supersymmetry. In particular, we will discuss several aspects of the string-string duality between the heterotic string, compactified on $K3\times T^2$, and the…
A precise formula for the elliptic genus of three E-strings is presented. The related refined free energy coincides with the result calculated from topological string on local half K3 Calabi-Yau threefold up to genus twelve. The elliptic…
We present a new class of dualities relating non-geometric Calabi-Yau compactifications of type II string theory to T-fold compactifications of the heterotic string, both preserving four-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetry. The…
In this note, we give a list of Calabi-Yau hypersurfaces in weighted projective 4-spaces with the property that a hypersurface contains naturally a pencil of K3 variety. For completeness we also obtain a similar list in the case K3…
We test the recently conjectured duality between $N=2$ supersymmetric type II and heterotic string models by analysing a class of higher dimensional interactions in the respective low-energy Lagrangians. These are $F$-terms of the form $F_g…