Related papers: Extremal Transitions in Heterotic String Theory
An instanton $(E, D)$ on a (pseudo-)hyperk\"ahler manifold $M$ is a vector bundle $E$ associated to a principal $G$-bundle with a connection $D$ whose curvature is pointwise invariant under the quaternionic structures of $T_x M, \ x\in M$,…
We study two aspects of the physics of heterotic Line Bundle Standard Models on smooth Calabi-Yau threefolds. First, we investigate to what degree modern moduli stabilization scenarios can affect the standard model spectrum in such…
We consider four dimensional heterotic compactifications on smooth elliptic Calabi-Yau threefolds. Using spectral cover techniques, we study bundle cohomology groups corresponding to charged matter multiplets. The analysis shows that in…
We investigate the physical and mathematical structure of a new class of geometric transitions proposed by Aganagic and Vafa. The distinctive aspect of these transitions is the presence of open string instanton corrections to Chern-Simons…
We study compactification of heterotic strings to three dimensions on orbifolds of G_2 holonomy. We consider the standard embedding and show that the gauge group is broken from E_8 x E_8 or SO(32) to F_4 x E_8 or SO(25) respectively. We…
We study the dynamics of supersymmetric theories in five dimensions obtained by compactifications of M-theory on a Calabi-Yau threefold X. For a compact X, this is determined by the geometry of X, in particular the Kahler class dependence…
Recent work initiated by Strominger has lead to a consistent physical interpretation of certain types of transitions between different string vacua. These transitions, discovered several years ago, involve singular conifold configurations…
In this work we extend the well-known spectral cover construction first developed by Friedman, Morgan, and Witten to describe more general vector bundles on elliptically fibered Calabi-Yau geometries. In particular, we consider the case in…
We study F-theory on elliptic threefold Calabi-Yau near colliding singularities. We demonstrate that resolutions of those singularities generically correspond to transitions to phases characterized by new tensor multiplets and enhanced…
We consider $\mathbb{Z}_N$ orbifolds of Type-II compactifications to four and six dimensions on several Calabi-Yau manifolds in the orbifold limit with the aim to compute the entanglement entropy. The spectrum can contain tachyons in the…
We describe an $N=2$ heterotic superstring model of rank-3 which is dual to the type-II string compactified on a Calabi-Yau manifold with Betti numbers $b_{1,1}=2$ and $b_{1,2}=86$. We show that the exact duality symmetry found from the…
In a recent paper, by working in the orbifold GUT limit of the Heterotic string, we showed how one could accommodate gauge coupling unification in the "mini-landscape" models of Lebedev et al. Furthermore, it was shown how one of the…
We study ${\cal N}=2$ compactifications of heterotic string theory on the CHL orbifold $(K3\times T^2)/\mathbb{Z}_N$ with $N= 2, 3, 5, 7$. $\mathbb{Z}_N$ acts as an involution on $K3$ together with a shift of $1/N$ along one of the circles…
The lower limit to string coupling unification in weakly coupled heterotic strings was shown by Kaplunovsky to be around Lambda_H ~ 5 x 10^{17} GeV. In contrast, under the scenario of an intermediate scale desert, the SU(3)_C x SU(2)_L x…
Horava--Witten M theory -- heterotic string duality poses special problems for the twisted sectors of heterotic orbifolds. In [1] we explained how in M theory the twisted states couple to gauge fields apparently living on M9 branes at both…
We study the rigid limit of a class of hypermultiplet moduli spaces appearing in Calabi-Yau compactifications of type IIB string theory, which is induced by a local limit of the Calabi-Yau. We show that the resulting hyperkahler manifold is…
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…
We present models of heterotic compactification on Calabi-Yau threefolds and compute the non-perturbative superpotential for vector bundle moduli. The key feature of these models is that the threefolds, which are elliptically fibered over…
The motivation for Calabi-Yau-like compactifications of the weakly coupled $E_8\otimes E_8$ heterotic string theory, its particle spectrum and the issue of dilaton stabilization are briefly reviewed. Modular invariant models for hidden…
We use string duality to describe instanton induced spontaneous supersymmetry breaking in string compactifications with additional background fields. Dynamical supersymmetry breaking by space-time instantons in the heterotic string theory…