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To study a nuclear system in the Skyrme model one must first construct a space of low energy Skyrme configurations. However, there is no mathematical definition of this configuration space and there is not even consensus on its fundamental properties, such as its dimension. Here, we propose that the full instanton moduli space can be used to construct a consistent skyrmion configuration space, provided that the Skyrme model is coupled to a meson. Each instanton generates a unique skyrmion and we reinterpret the $8N$ instanton moduli as physical degrees of freedom in the Skyrme model. In this picture a single skyrmion has six zero modes and two non-zero modes: one controls the overall scale of the solution and one the energy of the meson field. We study the $N=1$ and $N=2$ systems in detail. Two interacting skyrmions can excite the meson field through scattering, suggesting that the meson and Skyrme fields are intrinsically linked. Our proposal is the first consistent manifold description of the two-skyrmion configuration space. The method can also be generalised to higher $N$ and thus provides a general framework to study any skyrmion configuration space., 21 pages, 14 figures

We study fractional Skyrmions in a ℂP2 baby Skyrme model with a generalization of the easy-plane potential. By numerical methods, we find stable, metastable, and unstable solutions taking the shapes of molecules. Various solutions possess discrete symmetries, and the origin of those symmetries are traced back to congruencies of the fields in homogeneous coordinates on ℂP2.

A holographic perspective to study and characterize field spaces that arise in string compactifications is suggested. A concrete correspondence is developed by studying two-dimensional moduli spaces in supersymmetric string compactifications. It is proposed that there exist theories on the boundaries of each moduli space, whose crucial data are given by a Hilbert space, an Sl(2,C)-algebra, and two special operators. This boundary data is motivated by asymptotic Hodge theory and the fact that the physical metric on the moduli space of Calabi-Yau manifolds asymptotes near any infinite distance boundary to a Poincare metric with Sl(2,R) isometry. The crucial part of the bulk theory on the moduli space is a sigma model for group-valued matter fields. It is discussed how this might be coupled to a two-dimensional gravity theory. The classical bulk-boundary matching is then given by the proof of the famous Sl(2) orbit theorem of Hodge theory, which is reformulated in a more physical language. Applying this correspondence to the flux landscape in Calabi-Yau fourfold compactifications it is shown that there are no infinite tails of self-dual flux vacua near any co-dimension one boundary. This finiteness result is a consequence of the constraints on the near boundary expansion of the bulk solutions that match to the boundary data. It is also pointed out that there is a striking connection of the finiteness result for supersymmetric flux vacua and the Hodge conjecture., Comment: 57 pages, 2 figures, v2: minor clarifications, typos corrected, references added

The $O(d,d)$ invariant worldsheet theory for bosonic string theory with $d$ abelian isometries is employed to compute the beta functions and Weyl anomaly at one-loop. We show that vanishing of the Weyl anomaly coefficients implies the equations of motion of the Maharana-Schwarz action. We give a self-contained introduction into the required techniques, including beta functions, the Weyl anomaly for two-dimensional sigma models and the background field method. This sets the stage for a sequel to this paper on generalizations to higher loops and $\alpha'$ corrections., Comment: 47 pages, v2: version to appear in JHEP

We construct a class of topological field theories with Wess-Zumino term in spacetime dimensions $\ge 2$ whose target space has a geometrical structure that suitably generalizes Poisson or twisted Poisson manifolds. Assuming a field content comprising a set of scalar fields accompanied by gauge fields of degree $(1,p-1,p)$ we determine a generic Wess-Zumino topological field theory in $p+1$ dimensions with background data consisting of a Poisson 2-vector, a $(p+1)$-vector $R$ and a $(p+2)$-form $H$ satisfying a specific geometrical condition that defines a $H$-twisted $R$-Poisson structure of order $p+1$. For this class of theories we demonstrate how a target space covariant formulation can be found by means of an auxiliary connection without torsion. Furthermore, we study admissible deformations of the generic class in special spacetime dimensions and find that they exist in dimensions 2, 3 and 4. The two-dimensional deformed field theory includes the twisted Poisson sigma model, whereas in three dimensions we find a more general structure that we call bi-twisted $R$-Poisson. This extends the twisted $R$-Poisson structure of order 3 by a non-closed 3-form and gives rise to a topological field theory whose covariant formulation requires a connection with torsion and includes a twisted Poisson sigma model in three dimensions as a special case. The relation of the corresponding structures to differential graded Q-manifolds based on the degree shifted cotangent bundle $T^{\ast}[p]T^{\ast}[1]M$ is discussed, as well as the obstruction to them being QP-manifolds due to the Wess-Zumino term., Comment: 40 pages

Nonrelativistic string theory is a self-contained corner of string theory, with its string spectrum enjoying a Galilean-invariant dispersion relation. This theory is unitary and ultraviolet complete, and can be studied from first principles. In these notes, we focus on the bosonic closed string sector. In curved spacetime, nonrelativistic string theory is defined by a renormalizable quantum nonlinear sigma model in background fields, following certain symmetry principles that disallow any deformation towards relativistic string theory. We review previous proposals of such symmetry principles and propose a modified version that might be useful for supersymmetrizations. The appropriate target-space geometry determined by these local spacetime symmetries is string Newton-Cartan geometry. This geometry is equipped with a two-dimensional foliation structure that is restricted by torsional constraints. Breaking the symmetries that give rise to such torsional constraints in the target space will in general generate quantum corrections to a marginal deformation in the worldsheet quantum field theory. Such a deformation induces a renormalization group flow towards sigma models that describe relativistic strings., Comment: 37 pages; v2: published version

We consider a general (beyond $T\bar T$) deformation of the 2D $O(N+1)$ $\sigma$-model by the irrelevant dimension-four operators. The theory deformed in this most general way is not integrable, and the $S$-matrix loses its factorization properties. We perform the all-order summation of the leading infrared logs for the $2 \to 2$ scattering amplitude and provide the exact result for the $2 \to 2$ $S$-matrix in the leading logarithmic approximation. These results can provide us with new insights into the properties of the theories deformed by irrelevant operators more general than the $T\bar T$ deformation., Comment: 22 pages, 1 figure; The erroneous expressions for the tree-level LL-coefficients were corrected

Superstring/M-theory compactified on compact Ricci flat manifolds have recently been conjectured to exhibit instabilities whenever the metrics do not have special holonomy. We use worldsheet conformal field theory to investigate instabilities of Type II superstring theories on compact, Ricci flat, spin 3-manifolds including a worldsheet description of their spin structures. The instabilities are signalled by the appearance of stringy tachyons at small radius and a negative (1-loop) vacuum energy density at large radius. We briefly discuss the extension to higher dimensions., 30+3pp

Motivated by the swampland program, we show that the Weil-Petersson geometry of the moduli space of a Calabi-Yau manifold of complex dimension $d\leq4$ is a gravitational instanton (i.e. a finite-action solution of the Euclidean equations of motion of gravity with matter). More precisely, the moduli geometry of Calabi-Yau $d$-folds ($d\leq4$) describes instantons of (E)AdS Einstein gravity coupled to a standard chiral model. From the point of view of the low-energy physics of string/M-theory compactified on the Calabi-Yau $X$, the various fields propagating on its moduli space are the couplings appearing in the effective Lagrangian $\mathscr{L}_\text{eff}$., Comment: 18 pages; more details on the geometry and finite action

In this paper we discuss correlation function computations in massive topological Landau-Ginzburg orbifolds, extending old results of Vafa. We then apply these computations to provide further tests of the nonabelian mirrors proposal and two-dimensional Hori-Seiberg dualities with $(S)O_{\pm}$ gauge groups and their mirrors., 32 pages

We investigate the lattice ℂP N−1 sigma model on S s 1 $$ {S}_s^1 $$ (large) × S τ 1 $$ {S}_{\tau}^1 $$ (small) with the ℤ N symmetric twisted boundary condition, where a sufficiently large ratio of the circumferences (L s ≫ L τ ) is taken to approximate ℝ × S 1. We find that the expectation value of the Polyakov loop, which is an order parameter of the ℤ N symmetry, remains consistent with zero (|〈P〉| ∼ 0) from small to relatively large inverse coupling β (from large to small L τ ). As β increases, the distribution of the Polyakov loop on the complex plane, which concentrates around the origin for small β, isotropically spreads and forms a regular N-sided-polygon shape (e.g. pentagon for N = 5), leading to |〈P〉| ∼ 0. By investigating the dependence of the Polyakov loop on S s 1 $$ {S}_s^1 $$ direction, we also verify the existence of fractional instantons and bions, which cause tunneling transition between the classical N vacua and stabilize the ℤ N symmetry. Even for quite high β, we find that a regular-polygon shape of the Polyakov-loop distribution, even if it is broken, tends to be restored and |〈P〉| gets smaller as the number of samples increases. To discuss the adiabatic continuity of the vacuum structure from another viewpoint, we calculate the β dependence of “pseudo-entropy” density ∝ 〈T xx − T ττ 〉. The result is consistent with the absence of a phase transition between large and small β regions.

We continue our study of λ-deformed σ-models by setting up a $$ \frac{1}{k} $$ 1 k perturbative expansion around the free field point for cosets, in particular for the λ-deformed SU(2)/U(1) coset CFT. We construct an interacting field theory in which all deformation effects are manifestly encoded in the interaction vertices. Using this we reproduce the known β-function and the anomalous dimension of the composite operator perturbing away from the conformal point. We introduce the λ-dressed parafermions which have an essential Wilson- like phase in their expressions. Subsequently, we compute their anomalous dimension, as well as their four-point functions, as exact functions of the deformation and to leading order in the k expansion. Correlation functions with an odd number of these parafermions vanish as in the conformal case.

We globally quench the theory of two dimensional massless fermions (many flavours) with quartic interactions by making the quartic coupling a smooth function of time. Working in a derivative expansion we show that the discrete Z2 symmetry in case of the Gross-Neveu model, and the U(1) symmetry in case of the Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model, are restored during the zero-temperature quench. For the Gross-Neveu model we show that this can be understood as an effective thermalization. The time of symmetry restoration shows scaling with the quench rate. We identify this with the Kibble-Zurek scaling in the problem. In a suitable double scaling limit, the symmetry restoration may be understood in terms of Liouville quantum mechanics., Comment: 14 pages + appendices, matches published version

We investigate classical integrability on two recently discovered classes of backgrounds in massive IIA supergravity. These vacua are of the form AdS$_3\times\,$S$^2\times\mathbb{R}\times\,$CY$_2$, they preserve small $\mathcal{N}=(0,4)$ supersymmetry and are associated with D8$-$D6$-$D4$-$D2 Hanany-Witten brane set-ups. We choose an appropriate string embedding and use differential Galois theory on its associated Hamiltonian system, intending to produce the conditions under which Liouvillian solutions may occur. By constraining the parameters of the system according to the consistency of the associate brane set-ups we prove that no such conditions exist, yielding the complete non-integrability of these vacua. That is, up to the trivial cases where the background reduces to the Abelian and non-Abelian T-dual of AdS$_3\times\,$S$^3\times\,$T$^4$., Comment: 22 pages plus appendices. Added references, corrected typos, corrected/added comments, improved title

We build on the results of [1] for generalised frame fields on generalised quotient spaces and study integrable deformations for ℂPn. In particular we show how, when the target space of the Principal Chiral Model is a complex projective space, a two-parameter deformation can be introduced in principle. The second parameter can however be removed via a diffeomorphism, which we construct explicitly, in accordance with the results stemming from a thorough integrability analysis we carry out. We also elucidate how the deformed target space can be seen as an instance of generalised Kähler, or equivalently bi-Hermitian, geometry. In this respect, we find the generic form of the pure spinors for ℂPn and the explicit expression for the generalised Kähler potential for n = 1, 2.

Quite often the zero mode dynamics on solitonic vortices are described by a non-conformal effective world-sheet sigma model (WSSM). We address the problem of solitonic string quantization in this case. As well-known, only crfitical strings with superconformal WSSMs are self-consistent in ultra-violet (UV) domain. Thus, we look for the appropriate UV completion of the low-energy non-conformal WSSM. We ague that for the solitonic strings supported in well-defined bulk theories the UV complete WSSM has a UV fixed point which can be used for string quantization. As an example, we consider BPS non-Abelian vortices supported by four-dimensional (4D) \ntwo SQCD with the gauge group U$(N)$ and $N_f$ quark multiplets where $N_f\ge N$. In addition to translational moduli the non-Abelian vortex under consideration carries orientational and size moduli. Their low-energy dynamics are described by a two-dimensional \ntwot supersymmetric weighted model, namely, $\mathbb{WCP}(N, N_f-N)$. Given our UV completion of this WSSM we find its UV fixed point. The latter defines a superconformal WSSM. We observe two cases in which this conformal WSSM, combined with the free theory for four translational moduli, has ten-dimensional target space required for superstrings to be critical., Comment: 29 pages, 2 figs. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1805.10989, arXiv:1704.00825. V.2: typos corrected V.2 Section 3 is extended and Appendix added, V3 An explanatory comment is added in Sec. 2

Starting from a higher Courant bracket associated to exceptional generalized geometry, we provide a systematic derivation of all types of fluxes and their Bianchi identities for four-dimensional compactifications of M-theory. We show that these fluxes may be understood as generalized Wess-Zumino terms in certain topological threebrane sigma-models of AKSZ-type, which relates them to the higher structure of a Lie algebroid up to homotopy. This includes geometric compactifications of M-theory with G-flux and on twisted tori, and also its compactifications with non-geometric Q- and R-fluxes in specific representations of the U-duality group SL(5) in exceptional field theory., 34 pages; v2: modified fluxes in Section 6, references added; v3: minor corrections, references added; Final version published in JHEP

We study Noether symmetries in two-field cosmological $\alpha$-attractors, investigating the case when the scalar manifold is an elementary hyperbolic surface. This encompasses and generalizes the case of the Poincare disk. We solve the conditions for the existence of a `separated' Noether symmetry and find the form of the scalar potential compatible with such, for any elementary hyperbolic surface. For this class of symmetries, we find that the $\alpha$-parameter must have a fixed value. Using those Noether symmetries, we also obtain many exact solutions of the equations of motion of these models, which were studied previously with numerical methods., Comment: 65 pages; references and appendix added

We study Yang-Baxter sigma models with deformed 4D Minkowski spacetimes arising from classical $r$-matrices associated with $\kappa$-deformations of the Poincar\'e algebra. These classical $\kappa$-Poincar\'e $r$-matrices describe three kinds of deformations: 1) the standard deformation, 2) the tachyonic deformation, and 3) the light-cone deformation. For each deformation, the metric and two-form $B$-field are computed from the associated $r$-matrix. The first two deformations, related to the modified classical Yang-Baxter equation, lead to T-duals of dS$_4$ and AdS$_4$\,, respectively. The third deformation, associated with the homogeneous classical Yang-Baxter equation, leads to a time-dependent pp-wave background. Finally, we construct a Lax pair for the generalized $\kappa$-Poincar\'e $r$-matrix that unifies the three kinds of deformations mentioned above as special cases., Comment: 31 pages, v2: some clarifications and references added, published version

We show that the CFT with symmetry group $G_{k_1}\times G_{k_2}\times \cdots \times G_{k_n}$ consisting of WZW models based on the same group $G$, but at arbitrary integer levels, admits an integrable deformation depending on $2(n-1)$ continuous parameters. We derive the all-loop effective action of the deformed theory and prove integrability. We also calculate the exact in the deformation parameters RG flow equations which can be put in a particularly simple compact form. This allows a full determination and classification of the fixed points of the RG flow, in particular those that are IR stable. The models under consideration provide concrete realizations of integrable flows between CFTs. We also consider non-Abelian T-duality type limits., Comment: 27 pages

According to the Axionic String Anstaz (ASA) confining flux tubes in pure gluodynamics are in the same equivalence class as a new family of integrable non-critical strings, called axionic strings. In addition to translational modes, axionic strings carry a set of worldsheet axions transforming as an antisymmetric tensor under the group of transverse rotations. We initiate a study of integrable axionic strings at general number of space-time dimensions $D$. We show that in the infinite tension limit worldsheet axions should be described by a peculiar "pseudofree" theory---their $S$-matrix is trivial, but the corresponding action cannot be brought into a free form by a local field redefinition. This requirement fixes the axionic action to take a form of the $O(D-2)$ Wess--Zumino--Witten (WZW) model., Comment: 28 pages, 13 figures

We derive the semiclassical contributions from the real and complex bions in the two-dimensional $\mathbb C P^{N-1}$ sigma model on ${\mathbb R} \times S^{1}$ with a twisted boundary condition. The bion configurations are saddle points of the complexified Euclidean action, which can be viewed as bound states of a pair of fractional instantons with opposite topological charges. We first derive the bion solutions by solving the equation of motion in the model with a potential which simulates an interaction induced by fermions in the $\mathbb C P^{N-1}$ quantum mechanics. The bion solutions have quasi-moduli parameters corresponding to the relative distance and phase between the constituent fractional instantons. By summing over the Kaluza-Klein modes of the quantum fluctuations around the bion backgrounds, we find that the effective action for the quasi-moduli parameters is renormalized and becomes a function of the dynamical scale (or the renormalized coupling constant). Based on the renormalized effective action, we obtain the semiclassical bion contribution in a weak coupling limit by making use of the Lefschetz thimble method. We find that the non-perturbative contribution vanishes in the supersymmetric case and it has an imaginary ambiguity which is consistent with the expected infrared renormalon ambiguity in non-supersymmetric cases. This is the first explicit result indicating the relation between the complex bion and the infrared renormalon., Comment: 42 pages

We revisit two related phenomena in AdS3 string theory backgrounds. At pure NS-NS flux, the spectrum contains a continuum of long strings which can escape to the boundary of AdS3 at a finite cost of energy. Related to this are certain gaps in the BPS spectrum one computes from the RNS worldsheet description. One expects that both these effects disappear when perturbing slightly away from the pure NS-NS flux background. We employ the hybrid formalism for mixed flux backgrounds to demonstrate directly from the worldsheet that this is indeed the case., Journal of High Energy Physics, 2019 (2), ISSN:1126-6708, ISSN:1029-8479

We establish a double dualization in two-dimensional supersymmetric gauge theory. We construct a gauged linear sigma model (GLSM) which contains a complex twisted linear superfield coupled to two sets of Abelian vector superfields. In the IR regime, the GLSM provides a string sigma model whose target spaces are a defect NS5-brane, a Kaluza-Klein vortex and an exotic $5^2_2$-brane. All of them are five-branes of codimension two and are related by T-duality. This model is a natural extension of the GLSM proposed by Tong which gives a sigma model for an H-monopole, i.e., a smeared NS5-brane of codimension three. This is also regarded as an alternative system of the GLSM for exotic five-branes proposed by the present authors. In this analysis, we confirm that the T-duality transformation procedure in terms of the complex twisted linear superfield is applicable to dualize both the real and imaginary parts of the twisted chiral superfield even at the UV level, beyond the IR limit. This indicates that the T-duality transformations at finite gauge couplings can be performed in terms of reducible superfields in the same way as irreducible (twisted) chiral superfields. Furthermore, we study quantum vortex corrections to the GLSM at the UV level. In the IR limit, these corrections are mapped to string worldsheet instanton corrections to the five-branes of codimension two. The result completely agrees with those in double field theory analysis., 46 pages, version published in JHEP

We examine a class of Calabi-Yau varieties of the determinantal type in Grassmannians and clarify what kind of examples can be constructed explicitly. We also demonstrate how to compute their genus-0 Gromov-Witten invariants from the analysis of the Givental $I$-functions. By constructing $I$-functions from the supersymmetric localization formula for the two dimensional gauged linear sigma models, we describe an algorithm to evaluate the genus-0 A-model correlation functions appropriately. We also check that our results for the Gromov-Witten invariants are consistent with previous results for known examples included in our construction., Comment: 50 pages

We introduce and study conformal field theories specified by W −algebras commuting with certain set of screening charges. These CFT’s possess perturbations which define integrable QFT’s. We establish that these QFT’s have local and non-local Integrals of Motion and admit the perturbation theory in the weak coupling region. We construct factorized scattering theory which is consistent with non-local Integrals of Motion and perturbation theory. In the strong coupling limit the S−matrix of this QFT tends to the scattering matrix of the O(N) sigma model. The perturbation theory, Bethe ansatz technique, renormalization group approach and methods of conformal field theory are applied to show, that the constructed QFT’s are dual to integrable deformation of O(N) sigma-models.

We study string theory on AdS_3 backgrounds with mixed flux using the hybrid formalism of Berkovits, Vafa and Witten. We solve the worldsheet description of the theory completely in the plane-wave limit. This constitutes a direct derivation of the plane-wave spectrum from the worldsheet with mixed flux., Journal of High Energy Physics (10), ISSN:1126-6708, ISSN:1029-8479

The construction of effective actions for Nambu-Goldstone bosons, and the nonlinear sigma model, usually requires a target coset space $G/H$. Recent progresses uncovered a new formulation using only IR data, without reference to $G/H$, by imposing the Adler's zero condition, which can be seen to originate from the superselection rule in the space of degenerate vacua. The IR construction imposes a nonlinear shift symmetry on the Lagrangian to enforce the correct single soft limit amid constraints of the unbroken group $H$. We present a systematic study on the consequence of the Adler's zero condition in correlators of nonlinear sigma model, by deriving the conserved current and the Ward identity associated with the nonlinear shift symmetry, and demonstrate how the old-fashioned current algebra emerges. The Ward identity leads to a new representation of on-shell amplitudes, which amounts to bootstrapping the higher point amplitudes from lower point amplitudes and adding new vertices to satisfy the Adler's condition. The IR perspective allows one to extract Feynman rules for the mysterious extended theory of biadjoint cubic scalars residing in the subleading single soft limit, which was first discovered using the Cachazo-He-Yuan representation of scattering amplitudes. In addition, we present the subleading triple soft theorem in the nonlinear sigma model and show that it is also controlled by on-shell amplitudes of the same extended theory as in the subleading single soft limit., 47 pages, 17 figures, 1 appendix; matched to JHEP version in v2

We construct self-consistent analytic solutions in the ℂP N −1 model in the large-N limit, in which more than one Higgs scalar component take values inside a single or multiple soliton on an infinite space or on a ring, or around boundaries of a finite interval.

A symmetry-twisted boundary condition of the path integral provides a suitable framework for the semi-classical analysis of nonperturbative quantum field theories (QFTs), and we reinterpret it from the viewpoint of the Hilbert space. An appropriate twist with the unbroken symmetry can potentially produce huge cancellations among excited states in the state-sum, without affecting the ground states; we call this effect "quantum distillation". Quantum distillation can provide the underlying mechanism for adiabatic continuity, by preventing a phase transition under $S^1$ compactification. We revisit this point via the 't Hooft anomaly matching condition when it constrains the vacuum structure of the theory on $\mathbb{R}^d$ and upon compactification. We show that there is a precise relation between the persistence of the anomaly upon compactification, the Hilbert space quantum distillation, and the semi-classical analysis of the corresponding symmetry-twisted path integrals. We motivate quantum distillation in quantum mechanical examples, and then study its non-trivial action in QFT, with the example of the 2D Grassmannian sigma model $\mathrm{Gr}(N,M)$. We also discuss the connection of quantum distillation with large-$N$ volume independence and flavor-momentum transmutation., 29 pages, 2 figures

We continue the study of a recently proposed solvable irrelevant deformation of an AdS3/CFT2 correspondence that leads in the UV to a theory with Hagedorn spectrum. This can be thought of as a single trace analog of the $$ T\overline{T} $$ T T ¯ -deformation of the dual CFT2. Here we focus on the deformed worldsheet theory in presence of a conformal boundary. First, we compute the expectation value of a bulk primary operator on the disc geometry. We give a closed expression for such observable, from which we obtain the anomalous conformal dimension induced by the deformation. We compare the result with that coming from the computation of the 2-point correlation function on the sphere, finding exact agreement. We perform the computation using different techniques and making a comparative analysis of different regularization schemes to solve the logarithmically divergent integrals. This enables us to perform further consistency checks of our result by computing other observables of the deformed theory: we compute both the bulk-boundary 2-point and the boundary-boundary 2-point functions and are able to reproduce the anomalous dimensions of both boundary and bulk operators.

Homogeneous Yang-Baxter (YB) deformation of AdS$_5\times$S$^5$ superstring is revisited. We calculate the YB sigma model action up to quadratic order in fermions and show that homogeneous YB deformations are equivalent to $\beta$-deformations of the AdS$_5\times$S$^5$ background when the classical $r$-matrices consist of bosonic generators. In order to make our discussion clearer, we discuss YB deformations in terms of the double-vielbein formalism of double field theory. We further provide an O(10,10)-invariant string action that reproduces the Green-Schwarz type II superstring action up to quadratic order in fermions. When an AdS background contains a non-vanishing $H$-flux, it is not straightforward to perform homogeneous YB deformations. In order to get any hint for such YB deformations, we study $\beta$-deformations of $H$-fluxed AdS backgrounds and obtain various solutions of (generalized) type II supergravity., Comment: 95 pages; v2: clarifications and references added; v3: published version

In a previous paper we found that the isospin susceptibility of the O($n$) sigma-model calculated in the standard rotator approximation differs from the next-to-next to leading order chiral perturbation theory result in terms vanishing like $1/\ell\,,$ for $\ell=L_t/L\to\infty$ and further showed that this deviation could be described by a correction to the rotator spectrum proportional to the square of the quadratic Casimir invariant. Here we confront this expectation with analytic nonperturbative results on the spectrum in 2 dimensions, by Balog and Heged\"us for $n=3,4$ and by Gromov, Kazakov and Vieira for $n=4$. We also consider the case of 3 dimensions., Comment: 25 pages, 1 figure

We study generalized Kähler structures on N = (2, 2) supersymmetric WessZumino-Witten models; we use the well known case of SU(2) × U(1) as a toy model and develop tools that allow us to construct the superspace action and uncover the highly nontrivial structure of the hitherto unexplored case of SU(3); these tools should be useful for studying many other examples. We find that different generalized Kähler structures on N = (2, 2) supersymmetric Wess-Zumino-Witten models can be found by T-duality transformations along affine isometries.

We derive the nonlinear sigma model as a peculiar dimensional reduction of Yang-Mills theory. In this framework, pions are reformulated as higher-dimensional gluons arranged in a kinematic configuration that only probes cubic interactions. This procedure yields a purely cubic action for the nonlinear sigma model which exhibits a symmetry enforcing color-kinematics duality. Remarkably, the associated kinematic algebra originates directly from the Poincare algebra in higher dimensions. Applying the same construction to gravity yields a new quartic action for Born-Infeld theory and, applied once more, a cubic action for the special Galileon theory. Since the nonlinear sigma model and special Galileon are subtly encoded in the cubic sectors of Yang-Mills theory and gravity, respectively, their double copy relationship is automatic., Comment: fixed typos and references in v2. Matched to JHEP version in v3

The two-twistor formulation of particle mechanics in D-dimensional anti-de Sitter space for D=4,5,7, which linearises invariance under the AdS isometry group Sp(4;K) for K=R,C,H, is generalized to the massless N-extended "spinning particle". The twistor variables are gauge invariant with respect to the initial N local worldline supersymmetries; this simplifies aspects of the quantum theory such as implications of global gauge anomalies. We also give details of the two-supertwistor form of the superparticle, in particular the massive superparticle on AdS_5., Comment: v2: Minor additions (including references), typos corrected. 50 pp

All symmetric space $AdS_n$ solutions of type II supergravity have recently been found for $n>2$. For the supersymmetric solutions (and their T-duals) it is known that the Green-Schwarz string is classically integrable. We complete the classification by ruling out integrability for the remaining non-supersymmetric solutions. This is achieved by showing that tree-level scattering on the worldsheet of a GKP or BMN string fails to factorize for these cases., 17 pages; v2: Improvements to sec 1, results now summarized in Tab 1. Matches published version

In this work we revisit the problem of the quantization of the two-dimensional O(3) non-linear sigma model and its one-parameter integrable deformation -- the sausage model. Our consideration is based on the so-called ODE/IQFT correspondence, a variant of the Quantum Inverse Scattering Method.The approach allowed us to explore the integrable structures underlying the quantum O(3)/sausage model. Among the obtained results is a system of non-linear integral equations for the computation of the vacuum eigenvalues of the quantum transfer-matrices., 89 pages, 10 figures, v2: misprints corrected, some comments added, v3, v4: minor corrections, references added

We classify the topological terms (in a sense to be made precise) that may appear in a non-linear sigma model based on maps from an arbitrary worldvolume manifold to a homogeneous space $G/H$ (where $G$ is an arbitrary Lie group and $H \subset G$). We derive a new condition for $G$-invariance of topological terms, which is necessary and sufficient (at least when $G$ is connected), and discuss a variety of examples in quantum mechanics and quantum field theory. In the present work we discuss only terms that may be written in terms of (possibly only locally-defined) differential forms on $G/H$, leading to an action that is manifestly local. Such terms come in one of two types, with prototypical quantum-mechanical examples given by the Aharonov-Bohm effect and the Dirac monopole. The classification is based on the observation that, for topological terms, the maps from the worldvolume to $G/H$ may be replaced by singular homology cycles on $G/H$. In a forthcoming paper we apply the results to phenomenological models in which the Higgs boson is composite., 42 pages. Version accepted for publication in JHEP, with subsequent corrections

We give, for the first time, self-consistent large-N analytical solutions of inhomogeneous condensates in the quantum ℂP N − 1 model in the large-N limit. We find a map from a set of gap equations of the ℂP N − 1 model to those of the Gross-Neveu (GN) model (or the gap equation and the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equation), which enables us to find the self-consistent solutions. We find that the Higgs field of the ℂP N − 1 model is given as a zero mode of solutions of the GN model, and consequently only topologically non-trivial solutions of the GN model yield nontrivial solutions of the ℂP N − 1 model. A stable single soliton is constructed from an anti-kink of the GN model and has a broken (Higgs) phase inside its core, in which ℂP N − 1 modes are localized, with a symmetric (confining) phase outside. We further find a stable periodic soliton lattice constructed from a real kink crystal in the GN model, while the Ablowitz-Kaup-Newell-Segur hierarchy yields multiple solitons at arbitrary separations.

We analyze the classical and quantum vacua of 2d $\mathcal{N}=(8,8)$ supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory with $SU(N)$ and $U(N)$ gauge group, describing the worldvolume interactions of $N$ parallel D1-branes with flat transverse directions $\mathbb{R}^8$. We claim that the IR limit of the $SU(N)$ theory in the superselection sector labeled $M \pmod{N}$ --- identified with the internal dynamics of $(M,N)$-string bound states of Type IIB string theory --- is described by the symmetric orbifold $\mathcal{N}=(8,8)$ sigma model into $(\mathbb{R}^8)^{D-1}/\mathbb{S}_D$ when $D=\gcd(M,N)>1$, and by a single massive vacuum when $D=1$, generalizing the conjectures of E. Witten and others. The full worldvolume theory of the D1-branes is the $U(N)$ theory with an additional $U(1)$ 2-form gauge field $B$ coming from the string theory Kalb-Ramond field. This $U(N)+B$ theory has generalized field configurations, labeled by the $\mathbb{Z}$-valued generalized electric flux and an independent $\mathbb{Z}_N$-valued 't Hooft flux. We argue that in the quantum mechanical theory, the $(M,N)$-string sector with $M$ units of electric flux has a $\mathbb{Z}_N$-valued discrete $\theta$ angle specified by $M \pmod{N}$ dual to the 't Hooft flux. Adding the brane center-of-mass degrees of freedom to the $SU(N)$ theory, we claim that the IR limit of the $U(N) + B$ theory in the sector with $M$ bound F-strings is described by the $\mathcal{N}=(8,8)$ sigma model into ${\rm Sym}^{D} ( \mathbb{R}^8)$. We provide strong evidence for these claims by computing an $\mathcal{N}=(8,8)$ analog of the elliptic genus of the UV gauge theories and of their conjectured IR limit sigma models, and showing they agree. Agreement is established by noting that the elliptic genera are modular-invariant Abelian (multi-periodic and meromorphic) functions, which turns out to be very restrictive., Comment: 47 pages. Comments welcome!

We explicitly construct families of integrable $\sigma$-model actions smoothly interpolating between exact CFTs. In the ultraviolet the theory is the direct product of two current algebras at levels $k_1$ and $k_2$. In the infrared and for the case of two deformation matrices the CFT involves a coset CFT, whereas for a single matrix deformation it is given by the ultraviolet direct product theories but at levels $k_1$ and $k_2-k_1$. For isotropic deformations we demonstrate integrability. In this case we also compute the exact beta-function for the deformation parameters using gravitational methods. This is shown to coincide with previous results obtained using perturbation theory and non-perturbative symmetries., Comment: 1+27 pages, text improvements, version published in JHEP

We propose a higher-order Skyrme model with derivative terms of eighth, tenth and twelfth order. Our construction yields simple and easy-to-interpret higher-order Lagrangians. We first show that a Skyrmion with higher-order terms proposed by Marleau has an instability in the form of a baby-Skyrmion string, while the static energies of our construction are positive definite, implying stability against time-independent perturbations. However, we also find that the Hamiltonians of our construction possess two kinds of dynamical instabilities, which may indicate the instability with respect to time-dependent perturbations. Different from the well-known Ostrogradsky instability, the instabilities that we find are intrinsically of nonlinear nature and also due to the fact that even powers of the inverse metric gives a ghost-like higher-order kinetic-like term. The vacuum state is, however, stable. Finally, we show that at sufficiently low energies, our Hamiltonians in the simplest cases, are stable against time-dependent perturbations., LaTeX: 42 pages, 3 figures; V2: simplifications implemented in Secs. 5 and 6, and references added

In this note we reveal a connection between the phase space of lambda models on $S^{1}\times \mathbb{R}$ and the phase space of double Chern-Simons theories on $D\times \mathbb{R}$ and explain in the process the origin of the non-ultralocality of the Maillet bracket, which emerges as a boundary algebra. In particular, this means that the (classical) $AdS_{5}\times S^{5}$ lambda model can be understood as a double Chern-Simons theory defined on the Lie superalgebra $\mathfrak{psu}(2,2|4)$ after a proper dependence of the spectral parameter is introduced. This offers a possibility for avoiding the use of the problematic non-ultralocal Poisson algebras that preclude the introduction of lattice regularizations and the application of the QISM to string sigma models. The utility of the equivalence at the quantum level is, however, still to be explored., Comment: 27 pages. Published version

We study the 6d N=(0,2) superconformal field theory, which describes multiple M5-branes, on the product space S^2 x M_4, and suggest a correspondence between a 2d N=(0,2) half-twisted gauge theory on S^2 and a topological sigma-model on the four-manifold M_4. To set up this correspondence, we determine in this paper the dimensional reduction of the 6d N=(0,2) theory on a two-sphere and derive that the four-dimensional theory is a sigma-model into the moduli space of solutions to Nahm's equations, or equivalently the moduli space of k-centered SU(2) monopoles, where k is the number of M5-branes. We proceed in three steps: we reduce the 6d abelian theory to a 5d Super-Yang-Mills theory on I x M_4, with I an interval, then non-abelianize the 5d theory and finally reduce this to 4d. In the special case, when M_4 is a Hyper-Kahler manifold, we show that the dimensional reduction gives rise to a topological sigma-model based on tri-holomorphic maps. Deriving the theory on a general M_4 requires knowledge of the metric of the target space. For k=2 the target space is the Atiyah-Hitchin manifold and we twist the theory to obtain a topological sigma-model, which has both scalar fields and self-dual two-forms., 78 pages, 2 figures

The $S$-matrix of a quantum field theory is unchanged by field redefinitions, and so only depends on geometric quantities such as the curvature of field space. Whether the Higgs multiplet transforms linearly or non-linearly under electroweak symmetry is a subtle question since one can make a coordinate change to convert a field that transforms linearly into one that transforms non-linearly. Renormalizability of the Standard Model (SM) does not depend on the choice of scalar fields or whether the scalar fields transform linearly or non-linearly under the gauge group, but only on the geometric requirement that the scalar field manifold ${\mathcal M}$ is flat. We explicitly compute the one-loop correction to scalar scattering in the SM written in non-linear Callan-Coleman-Wess-Zumino (CCWZ) form, where it has an infinite series of higher dimensional operators, and show that the $S$-matrix is finite. Standard Model Effective Field Theory (SMEFT) and Higgs Effective Field Theory (HEFT) have curved ${\mathcal M}$, since they parametrize deviations from the flat SM case. We show that the HEFT Lagrangian can be written in SMEFT form if and only if ${\cal M}$ has a $SU(2)_L \times U(1)_Y$ invariant fixed point. Experimental observables in HEFT depend on local geometric invariants of ${\mathcal M}$ such as sectional curvatures, which are of order $1/\Lambda^2$, where $\Lambda$ is the EFT scale. We give explicit expressions for these quantities in terms of the structure constants for a general $\mathcal G \to \mathcal H$ symmetry breaking pattern. (Full abstract in pdf) The S-matrix of a quantum field theory is unchanged by field redefinitions, and so it only depends on geometric quantities such as the curvature of field space. Whether the Higgs multiplet transforms linearly or non-linearly under electroweak symmetry is a subtle question since one can make a coordinate change to convert a field that transforms linearly into one that transforms non-linearly. Renormalizability of the Standard Model (SM) does not depend on the choice of scalar fields or whether the scalar fields transform linearly or non-linearly under the gauge group, but only on the geometric requirement that the scalar field manifold $ \mathrm{\mathcal{M}} $ is flat. The $S$-matrix of a quantum field theory is unchanged by field redefinitions, and so only depends on geometric quantities such as the curvature of field space. Whether the Higgs multiplet transforms linearly or non-linearly under electroweak symmetry is a subtle question since one can make a coordinate change to convert a field that transforms linearly into one that transforms non-linearly. Renormalizability of the Standard Model (SM) does not depend on the choice of scalar fields or whether the scalar fields transform linearly or non-linearly under the gauge group, but only on the geometric requirement that the scalar field manifold ${\mathcal M}$ is flat. We explicitly compute the one-loop correction to scalar scattering in the SM written in non-linear Callan-Coleman-Wess-Zumino (CCWZ) form, where it has an infinite series of higher dimensional operators, and show that the $S$-matrix is finite. Standard Model Effective Field Theory (SMEFT) and Higgs Effective Field Theory (HEFT) have curved ${\mathcal M}$, since they parametrize deviations from the flat SM case. We show that the HEFT Lagrangian can be written in SMEFT form if and only if ${\cal M}$ has a $SU(2)_L \times U(1)_Y$ invariant fixed point. Experimental observables in HEFT depend on local geometric invariants of ${\mathcal M}$ such as sectional curvatures, which are of order $1/\Lambda^2$, where $\Lambda$ is the EFT scale. We give explicit expressions for these quantities in terms of the structure constants for a general $\mathcal G \to \mathcal H$ symmetry breaking pattern. (Full abstract in pdf)

We give a "holographic" explanation of Poisson-Lie T-duality in terms of Chern-Simons theory (or, more generally, in terms of Courant sigma-models) with appropriate boundary conditions., 17 pages (a mistake in the energy-momentum tensor on p.2 corrected)

Geometric and dynamical aspects of a coupled 4D-2D interacting quantum field theory - the gauged nonAbelian vortex - are investigated. The fluctuations of the internal 2D nonAbelian vortex zeromodes excite the massless 4D Yang-Mills modes and in general give rise to divergent energies. This means that the well-known 2D CP(N-1) zeromodes associated with a nonAbelian vortex become nonnormalizable. Moreover, all sorts of global, topological 4D effects such as the nonAbelian Aharonov-Bohm effect come into play. These topological global features and the dynamical properties associated with the fluctuation of the 2D vortex moduli modes are intimately correlated, as shown concretely here in a U(1) x SU(N) x SU(N) model with scalar fields in a bifundamental representation of the two SU(N) factor gauge groups., Comment: Latex, 39 pages, 5 figures

We study a class of two-dimensional N=(2,2) supersymmetric gauge theories, given by semichiral multiplets coupled to the standard vector multiplet. In the UV, these theories are traditional gauge theories deformed by a gauged Wess-Zumino term. In the IR, they give rise to nonlinear sigma models on noncompact generalized K\"ahler manifolds, which contain a three-form flux H and whose metric is not K\"ahler. We place these theories on S^2 and compute their partition function exactly with localization techniques. We find that the contribution of instantons to the partition function that we define is insensitive to the deformation, and discuss our results from the point of view of the generalized K\"ahler target space., Comment: 2+24+17 pages; References updated and minor modifications in v2 (published version)

Target space duality is one of the most profound properties of string theory. However it customarily requires that the background fields satisfy certain invariance conditions in order to perform it consistently; for instance the vector fields along the directions that T-duality is performed have to generate isometries. In the present paper we examine in detail the possibility to perform T-duality along non-isometric directions. In particular, based on a recent work of Kotov and Strobl, we study gauged 2D sigma models where gauge invariance for an extended set of gauge transformations imposes weaker constraints than in the standard case, notably the corresponding vector fields are not Killing. This formulation enables us to follow a procedure analogous to the derivation of the Buscher rules and obtain two dual models, by integrating out once the Lagrange multipliers and once the gauge fields. We show that this construction indeed works in non-trivial cases by examining an explicit class of examples based on step 2 nilmanifolds., Comment: 1+18 pages; version 2: corrections and improvements, more complete version than the published one