Related papers: Open and Closed String field theory interpreted in…
In this talk we give a brief review of the algebraic structure behind the open and closed topological strings and $D$-branes and emphasize the role of tensor category and the Frobenius algebra. Also, we speculate on the possibility of…
A low energy string theory should reduce to an ordinary quantum field theory, but in reality the structures of the two are so different as to make the equivalence obscure. The string formalism is more symmetrical between the spacetime and…
There are various reasons why adding stubs to the vertices of open string field theory (OSFT) is interesting: Not only the stubs can tame certain singularities and make the theory more well-behaved, but also the new theory shares a lot of…
We construct a hierarchy of supersymmetric string theories by showing that the general N-extended superstrings may be viewed as a special class of the (N+1)-extended superstrings. As a side result, we find a twisted (N+2) superconformal…
This is an expanded and updated version of a talk given at the Conference on Topics in Geometry and Physics at the University of Southern California, November 6, 1992. It is a survey talk, aimed at mathematicians AND physicists, which…
A minimal area problem imposing different length conditions on open and closed curves is shown to define a one parameter family of covariant open-closed quantum string field theories. These interpolate from a recently proposed factorizable…
This is a brief introduction to the subject of Conformal Field Theory on surfaces with boundaries and crosscaps, which describes the perturbative expansion of open string theory.
The first part is an introduction to conformal field theory and string perturbation theory. The second part deals with the search for a deeper answer to the question posed in the title. Contents: 1. Conformal Field Theory 2. String Theory…
Deformations of topological open string theories are described, with an emphasis on their algebraic structure. They are encoded in the mixed bulk-boundary correlators. They constitute the Hochschild complex of the open string algebra -- the…
We summarize the results obtained in the last few years about permutation orbifolds in two-dimensional conformal field theories, their application to string theory and their use in the construction of four-dimensional heterotic string…
Closed string diagrams are derived from cubic open string field theory using a gauge fixed kinetic operator. The basic idea is to use a string propagator that does not generate a boundary to the world sheet. Using this propagator and the…
I review the construction of an action for open superstring field theory which does not suffer from the contact term problems of other approaches. I also discuss a possible generalization of this action for closed superstring field theory.
A polemical article evaluating string theory from the point of view of a quantum field theorist working in a mathematics department. Comments to the author are encouraged.
Field theory is an area in physics with a deceptively compact notation. Although general purpose computer algebra systems, built around generic list-based data structures, can be used to represent and manipulate field-theory expressions,…
In this short talk we review basic ideas of string field theory with the emphasis on the recent developments. We show how without too much technicality one can look for analytic solutions to Witten's open string field theory. This is an…
We discuss different formulations and approaches to string theory and $ 2d$ quantum gravity. The generic idea to get a unique description of {\it many} different string vacua altogether is demonstrated on the examples in $ 2d$ conformal,…
This is a survey of various types of Floer theories (both in symplectic geometry and gauge theory) and relations among them.
We study gauge invariant operators of open string field theory and find a precise correspondence with on-shell closed strings. We provide a detailed proof of the gauge invariance of the operators and a heuristic interpretation of their…
The interpretation of closed fundamental strings as solitons in open string field theory is reviewed. Noncommutativity is introduced to facilitate an explicit construction. The tension is computed exactly and the correct spectrum is…
Open and Closed super-string field theories are constructed in an event-symmetric target space. The partition functions of Statistical and Quantum models are constructed in terms of invariants defined on Lie-algebra representations. An…