Search

Motivated by the recent advances in the understanding of integrability for $AdS_3$ backgrounds, we present a lightning review of this approach, with particular attention to the "tensionless" limits (with zero and one unit of NSNS flux), and to the many integrable deformations of the supergravity backgrounds. Our aim is to concisely but comprehensively take stock of the state of the art in the field, in a way accessible to non-experts, and to highlight outstanding challenges. Along the way we reference where the various derivation of these results, which we mostly omit, can be found in full detail., Comment: Review prepared for the MATRIX Annals; 52 pages, 4 figures (3 of which from 2308.11576); feedback welcome

We propose the dressing factors for the scattering of fundamental massive particles on the worldsheet of mixed-flux $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ superstrings. The proposal passes several checks, including comparison with perturbative and semiclassical computations from the string sigma model. We also conjecture the form of the remaining dressing factors of the theory, which completes the worldsheet-integrability construction for this model., Comment: 5 pages, PRL style

We present a map between the excitation of the symmetric-product orbifold CFT of $T^4$, and of the worldsheet-integrability description of $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ of Lloyd, Ohlsson Sax, Sfondrini, and Stefa\'nski at $k=1$. We discuss the map in the absence of RR fluxes, when the theory is free, and at small RR flux, $h\ll 1$, where the symmetric-orbifold CFT is deformed by a marginal operator from the twist-two sector. We discuss the recent results of Gaberdiel, Gopakumar, and Nairz, who computed from the perturbed symmetric-product orbifold the central extension to the symmetry algebra of the theory and its coproduct. We show that it coincides with the $h\ll 1$ expansion of the lightcone symmetry algebra known from worldsheet integrability, and that hence the S matrix found by Gaberdiel, Gopakumar, and Nairz maps to the one bootstrapped by the worldsheet integrability approach., Comment: 38 pages; v2: ref's added; v3: more ref's added, subsections 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3 added; v4: more comments added

We review different exact approaches to string theory. In the context of the Green-Schwarz superstring, we discuss the action in curved backgrounds and its supercoset formulation, with particular attention to superstring backgrounds of the $AdS_3$ type supported by both Ramond-Ramond and Neveu-Schwarz-Neveu-Schwarz fluxes. This is the basis for the discussion of classical integrability, of worldsheet-scattering factorisation in the uniform lightcone gauge, and eventually of the string spectrum through the mirror thermodynamic Bethe ansatz, which for $AdS_3$ backgrounds was only derived and analysed very recently. We then illustrate some aspects of the Ramond-Neveu-Schwarz string, and introduce the formalism of Berkovits-Vafa-Witten, which has seen very recent applications to $AdS_3$ physics, which we also briefly review. Finally, we present the relation between M-theory in the discrete lightcone quantisation and decoupling limits of string theory that exhibit non-relativistic behaviours, highlighting the connection with integrable $T\bar{T}$ deformations, as well as the relation between spin-matrix theory and Landau-Lifshitz models. This review is based on lectures given at the Young Researchers Integrability School and Workshop 2022 "Taming the string worldsheet" at NORDITA, Stockholm., Comment: 283 pages; v2: references added

String on $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ backgrounds are known to be classically integrable in the presence of a mixture of Ramond-Ramond and Neveu-Schwarz-Neveu-Schwarz fluxes. It is expected that this results in the existence of a well-defined factorised worldsheet S matrix. In order to use integrability to compute the string spectrum we need such a factorised S matrix to exist also for the "mirror" model, obtained by a double Wick rotation of the original worldsheet theory. In the mixed-flux case the mirror model has a complex Hamiltonian, which raises questions on its well-definedness. In the paper we study the worldsheet tree-level S matrix of the original and mirror model and discuss some necessary conditions for the integrability and reality of the spectrum., Comment: 35 pages, references added; further comments added

In a recent letter we presented the equations which describe tensionless limit of the excited-state spectrum for strings on $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ supported by Ramond-Ramond flux, and their numerical solution. In this paper, we give a detailed account of the derivation of these equations from the mirror TBA equations proposed by Frolov and Sfondrini, discussing the contour-deformation trick which we used to obtain excited-state equations and the tensionless limit. We also comment at length on the algorithm for the numerical solution of the equations in the tensionless limit, and present a number of explicit numerical results, as well as comment on their interpretation., Comment: 82 pages, many figures and tables

Strings on AdS3xS3xT4 with mixed Ramond-Ramond and Neveu-Schwarz-Neveu-Schwarz flux are known to be classically integrable. This is a crucial property of this model, which cannot be studied by conventional worldsheet-CFT techniques. Integrability should carry over to the quantum level, and the worldsheet S matrix in the lightcone gauge is known up to the so-called dressing factors. In this work we study the kinematics of mixed-flux theories and consider a relativistic limit of the S matrix whereby we can complete the bootstrap program, including the dressing factors for fundamental particles and bound states. This provides an important test for the dressing factors of the full worldsheet model, and offers new insights on the features of the model when the amount of NSNS flux is low., Comment: 53 pages, many figures; v2: minor changes

We use the lightcone $AdS_{3}\times S^{3}\times T^{4}$ superstring sigma model with fermions and bosons subject to twisted boundary conditions to find the ground state energy in the semi-classical approximation where effective string tension $h$ and the light-cone momentum $L$ are sent to infinity in such a way that ${\cal J}\equiv L/h$ is kept fixed. We then analyse the ground state energy of the model by means of the mirror TBA equations for the $AdS_{3}\times S^{3}\times T^{4}$ superstring in the pure RR background. The calculation is performed for small twist $\mu$ with $L$ and $h$ fixed, for large $L$ with $\mu$ and $h$ fixed, and for small $h$ with $\mu$ and $L$ fixed. In these limits the contribution of the gapless worldsheet modes coming from the $T^4$ bosons and fermions can be computed exactly, and is shown to be proportional to $hL/(4L^2-1)$. Comparison with the semi-classical result shows that the TBA equations involve only one $Y_0$-function for massless excitations but not two as was conjectured before. Some of the results obtained are generalised to the mixed-flux $AdS_{3}\times S^{3}\times T^{4}$ superstring., Comment: 31 pages

Despite impressive advances in the AdS3/CFT2 correspondence, the setup involving Ramond-Ramond backgrounds, which is related to the D1-D5 system of branes, remained relatively poorly understood. We use the Mirror TBA equations recently constructed by Frolov and Sfondrini to study the spectrum of pure Ramond-Ramond $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ strings. We find that the leading-order contribution to the anomalous dimensions at small tension is due to the gapless worldsheet excitations, i.e. to the $T^4$ bosons and their superpartners, whose interactions are nontrivial., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures

The Root-$T \overline{T}$ flow was recently introduced as a universal and classically marginal deformation of any two-dimensional translation-invariant field theory. The flow commutes with the (irrelevant) $T \overline{T}$ flow and it can be integrated explicitly for a large class of actions, leading to non-analytic Lagrangians reminiscent of the four-dimensional Modified-Maxwell theory (ModMax). It is not a priori obvious whether the Root-$T \overline{T}$ flow preserves integrability, like it is the case for the $T \overline{T}$ flow. In this paper we demonstrate that this is the case for a large class of classical models by explicitly constructing a deformed Lax connection. We discuss the principal chiral model and the non-linear sigma models on symmetric and semi-symmetric spaces, without or with Wess-Zumino term. We also construct Lax connections for the two-parameter families of theories deformed by both Root-$T \overline{T}$ and $T \overline{T}$ for all of these models., Comment: 34 pages; LaTeX; references added; comment added

In this letter we introduce a one-parameter deformation of two-dimensional quantum field theories generated by a non-analytic operator which we call Root-$T \overline{T}$. For a conformal field theory, the operator coincides with the square-root of the $T \overline{T}$ operator. More generally, the operator is defined so that classically it is marginal and generates a flow which commutes with the $T \overline{T}$-flow. Intriguingly, the Root-$T \overline{T}$ flow is closely related to the ModMax theory recently constructed by Bandos, Lechner, Sorokin and Townsend., Comment: 6 pages; LaTeX; references and note added

We work out the algebraic Bethe ansatz for the worldsheet theory of the $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ superstring, and use it to derive the transfer matrices for fundamental particles and bound states of the string and mirror model. We also show how the Bethe equations and transfer matrices are modified in the presence of an Abelian twist. These will be an important ingredient in the exploration of the mirror thermodynamic Bethe ansatz equations recently proposed by Frolov and Sfondrini, and their generalisation to twisted and deformed models., Comment: 45 pages, misprints corrected, bound state discussion corrected and expanded

We consider superstrings on the pure-Ramond-Ramond $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ background. Using the recently-proposed dressing factors for the worldsheet S matrix, we formulate the string hypothesis for the mirror Bethe-Yang equations, and use it to derive the canonical mirror thermodynamic Bethe ansatz (TBA) equations of the model. For the first time, these equations account for all massive and massless modes of the model, and do not resort to any limit or special kinematics. We also discuss the simplified mirror TBA equations and the Y-system of the model., Comment: 27 pages; v2: minor changes, references added

The AdS3/CFT2 correspondence features massless non-relativistic modes on the string worldsheet in lightcone gauge. We study in detail these excitations and highlight how they naturally split between chiral (left-moving) and anti-chiral (right-moving) representations. In light of this split we discuss the constraints on the two-particle worldsheet S matrix imposed by braiding and physical unitarity, parity, time-reversal, and crossing invariance. We also comment on the implication of this split in the mirror kinematics., Comment: 27 pages; v2: minor changes

The worldsheet S matrix of strings on the $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ background is almost entirely fixed by symmetries, up to five functions -- the dressing factors. These must satisfy several consistency conditions, in particular a set of crossing equations. We find that the existing proposal for the dressing factors, while crossing invariant, violates some of these consistency conditions. We put forward a new set of dressing factors and discuss in detail their analytic properties in the string and mirror region, as well as under bound-state fusion., Comment: 67 pages

Two distinct $\eta$-deformations of strings on AdS$_5\times$S$^5$ can be defined; both amount to integrable quantum deformations of the string non-linear sigma model, but only one is itself a superstring background. In this paper we compare their conjectured all-loop worldsheet S matrices and derive the corresponding Bethe equations. We find that, while the S matrices are apparently different, they lead to the same Bethe equations. Moreover, in either case the eigenvalues of the transfer matrix, which encode the conserved charges of each system, also coincide. We conclude that the integrable structure underlying the two constructions is essentially the same. Finally, we write down the full Bethe-Yang equations describing the asymptotic spectrum of the superstring background., Comment: 34 pages, minor changes

We propose an integrable bootstrap framework for the computation of correlation functions for superstrings in $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$ backgrounds supported by an arbitrary mixture or Ramond-Ramond and Neveu-Schwarz-Neveu-Schwarz fluxes. The framework extends the "hexagon tessellation" approach which was originally proposed for $AdS_5\times S^5$ and for the first time it demonstrates its applicability to other (less supersymmetric) setups. We work out the hexagon form factor for two-particle states, including its dressing factors which follow from those of the spectral problem, and we show that it satisfies non-trivial consistency conditions. We propose a bootstrap principle, slightly different from that of $AdS_5\times S^5$, which allows to extend the form factor to arbitrarily many particles. Finally, we compare its predictions with some correlation functions of protected operators. Possible applications of this construction include the study of wrapping corrections, of higher-point correlation functions, and of non-planar corrections., Comment: 58 pages, 6 figures, v3: minor changes

A particularly rich class of integrable systems arises from the AdS/CFT duality. There, the two-dimensional quantum field theory living on the string worldsheet may be understood in terms of a non-relativistic factorized S matrix, and the energy spectrum may be derived by techniques such as the mirror thermodynamic Bethe ansatz or the quantum spectral curve. In the case of AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$ without Ramond-Ramond fluxes, the worldhseet theory is a Wess-Zumino-Witten model with continous and discrete representations which, for the lowest allowed level, is dual to the symmetric product orbifold of a free theory. I will show how continuous representations may arise from integrability, and that at lowest level the Bethe equations yield the symmetric product orbifold partition function on the nose., Comment: 6 pages

We consider the three-parameter integrable deformation of the $AdS_3\times S^3$ superstring background constructed in arXiv:1811.00453. Working on the string worldsheet in uniform lightcone gauge, we find the tree-level bosonic S matrix of the model and study some of its limits., Comment: 28 pages, one Mathematica notebook attached; v2: minor changes, references added

In the description of the AdS5/CFT4 duality by an integrable system the scattering matrix for bound states plays a crucial role: it was initially constructed for the evaluation of finite size corrections to the planar spectrum of energy levels/anomalous dimensions by the thermodynamic Bethe ansatz, and more recently it re-appeared in the context of the glueing prescription of the hexagon approach to higher-point functions. In this work we present a simplified form of this scattering matrix and we make its pole structure manifest. We find some new relations between its matrix elements and also present an explicit form for its inverse. We finally discuss some of its properties including crossing symmetry. Our results will hopefully be useful for computing finite-size effects such as the ones given by the complicated sum-integrals arising from the glueing of hexagons, as well as help towards understanding universal features of the AdS5/CFT4 scattering matrix., Comment: 17 pages; Mathematica notebook attached to the submission; v2: misprints and references corrected

Correlation functions of gauge-invariant composite operators in N=4 super Yang-Mills theory can be computed by integrability using triangulations. The elementary tile in this process is the hexagon, which should be glued by appropriately inserting resolutions of the identity involving virtual ("mirror") magnons. We consider this problem for five-point functions of protected operators. At one-loop in the 't Hooft coupling, it is necessary to glue three adjacent tiles which involves two virtual magnons scattering among each other. We show that the result can be simplified by using an adapted mirror rotation and employing appropriate summation techniques. The mirror-particle contributions then yield hyperlogarithms of weight two. Finally, we use these results to investigate braiding prescriptions introduced in earlier work on the problem., Comment: 45 pages, 5 figures

We consider current-current deformations that generalise $T\bar{T}$ ones, and show that they may be also introduced for integrable spin chains. In analogy with the integrable QFT setup, we define the deformation as a modification of the S matrix in the Bethe equations. Using results by Bargheer, Beisert and Loebbert we show that the deforming operator is composite and constructed out of two currents on the lattice; its expectation value factorises like for $T\bar{T}$. Such a deformation may be considered for any combination of charges that preserve the model's integrable structure., Comment: 6 pages, two columns; v2: typos corrected, refs added

We consider the most general set of integrable deformations extending the $T\bar{T}$ deformation of two-dimensional relativistic QFTs. They are CDD deformations of the theory's factorised S-matrix related to the higher-spin conserved charges. Using a mirror version of the generalised Gibbs ensemble, we write down the finite-volume expectation value of the higher-spin charges, and derive a generalised flow equation that every charge must obey under a generalised $T\bar{T}$ deformation. This also reproduces the known flow equations on the nose., Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure; v2 misprint corrected, added references

The relationship between $T\bar{T}$ deformations and the uniform light-cone gauge, first noted in arXiv:1804.01998, provides a powerful generating technique for deformed models. We recall this construction, distinguishing between changes of the gauge frame, which do not affect the theory, and genuine deformations. We investigate the geometric interpretation of the latter and argue that they affect the global features of the geometry before gauge fixing. Exploiting a formal relation between uniform light-cone gauge and static gauge in a T-dual frame, we interpret such a change as a TsT transformation involving the two light-cone coordinates. In the static-gauge picture, the $T\bar{T}$ CDD factor then has a natural interpretation as a Drinfel'd-Reshetikhin twist of the worldsheet S matrix. To illustrate these ideas, we find the geometries yielding a $T\bar{T}$ deformation of the worldsheet S matrix of pp-wave and Lin-Lunin-Maldacena backgrounds., Comment: 30 pages, 1 figure; v2: further examples (section 5) and discussion of JTbar deformations (appendix B) added, references added

We construct a solvable deformation of two-dimensional theories with $(2,2)$ supersymmetry using an irrelevant operator which is a bilinear in the supercurrents. This supercurrent-squared operator is manifestly supersymmetric, and equivalent to $T\bar{T}$ after using conservation laws. As illustrative examples, we deform theories involving a single $(2,2)$ chiral superfield. We show that the deformed free theory is on-shell equivalent to the $(2,2)$ Nambu-Goto action. At the classical level, models with a superpotential exhibit more surprising behavior: the deformed theory exhibits poles in the physical potential which modify the vacuum structure. This suggests that irrelevant deformations of $T\overline{T}$ type might also affect infrared physics., Comment: 39 pages

We investigate the behaviour of two-dimensional quantum field theories with $\mathcal{N}=(0,2)$ supersymmetry under a deformation induced by the `$T\bar{T}$' composite operator. We show that the deforming operator can be defined by a point-splitting regularisation in such a way as to preserve $\mathcal{N}=(0,2)$ supersymmetry. As an example of this construction, we work out the deformation of a free $\mathcal{N}=(0,2)$ theory and compare to that induced by the Noether stress-energy tensor. Finally, we show that the $\mathcal{N}=(0,2)$ supersymmetric deformed action actually possesses $\mathcal{N}=(2,2)$ symmetry, half of which is non-linearly realised.

We compute the tree-level bosonic S matrix in light-cone gauge for superstrings on pure-NSNS $\text{AdS}_{3}\times\text{S}^3\times\text{S}^3\times\text{S}^1$. We show that it is proportional to the identity and that it takes the same form as for $\text{AdS}_{3} \times \text{S}^3\times\text{T}^4$ and for flat space. Based on this, we make a conjecture for the exact worldsheet S matrix and derive the mirror thermodynamic Bethe ansatz (TBA) equations describing the spectrum. Despite a non-trivial vacuum energy, they can be solved in closed form and coincide with a simple set of Bethe ansatz equations - again much like $\text{AdS}_{3}\times\text{S}^3\times\text{T}^4$ and flat space. This suggests that the model may have an integrable spin-chain interpretation. Finally, as a check of our proposal, we compute the spectrum from the worldsheet CFT in the case of highest-weight representations of the underlying Ka\v{c}-Moody algebras, and show that the mirror-TBA prediction matches it on the nose., Comment: 38 pages, Version accepted for publication in JHEP

We investigate the "$T\bar{T}$" deformations of two-dimensional supersymmetric quantum field theories. More precisely, we show that, by using the conservation equations for the supercurrent multiplet, the $T\bar{T}$ deforming operator can be constructed as a supersymmetric descendant. Here we focus on $\mathcal{N}=(1,0)$ and $\mathcal{N}=(1,1)$ supersymmetry. As an example, we analyse in detail the $T\bar{T}$ deformation of a free $\mathcal{N}=(1,0)$ supersymmetric action. We also argue that the link between $T\bar{T}$ and string theory can be extended to superstrings: by analysing the light-cone gauge fixing for superstrings in flat space, we show the correspondence of the string action to the $T\bar{T}$ deformation of a free theory of eight $\mathcal{N}=(1,1)$ scalar multiplets on the nose. We comment on how these constructions relate to the geometrical interpretations of $T\bar{T}$ deformations that have recently been discussed in the literature., Comment: V3: comments, references, and a new subsection 2.5 added; version to appear in JHEP; 29 pages

The hexagon-form-factor program was proposed as a way to compute three- and higher-point correlation functions in $\mathcal{N}=4$ super-symmetric Yang-Mills theory and in the dual AdS$_5\times$S$^5$ superstring theory, by exploiting the integrability of the theory in the 't Hooft limit. This approach is reminiscent of the asymptotic Bethe ansatz in that it applies to a large-volume expansion. Finite-volume corrections can be incorporated through L\"uscher-like formulae, though the systematics of this expansion is largely unexplored so far. Strikingly, finite-volume corrections may feature negative powers of the 't Hooft coupling $g$ in the small-$g$ expansion, potentially leading to a breakdown of the formalism. In this work we show that the finite-volume perturbation theory for the hexagon is positive and thereby compatible with the weak-coupling expansion for arbitrary $n$-point functions., Comment: v2: misprints corrected, further details on physical magnons added

Building on arXiv:1804.01998 we investigate the integrable structure of the Wess-Zumino-Witten (WZW) model describing closed strings on $AdS_3\times S^3\times T^4$. Using the recently-proposed integrable S matrix we show analytically that all wrapping corrections cancel and that the theory has a natural spin-chain interpretation. We construct the integrable spin chain and discuss its relation with the WZW description. Finally we compute the spin-chain spectrum in closed form and show that it matches the WZW prediction on the nose., Comment: 46 pages, 3 figures, 9 tables; misprints corrected, references added

The plane-wave limit of ${\rm AdS}_3 \times {\rm S}^3 \times {\rm S}^3 \times {\rm S}^1$ is analysed for generic null-geodesics that are not necessarily BPS. For the case of pure NS-NS flux it is shown how the resulting spectrum can be reproduced as a suitable limit of the world-sheet description in terms of WZW models. Since supersymmetry is broken, most of the degeneracies are lifted, and thus the identification of states is quite unambiguous., Comment: 32 pages LaTeX

We consider the worldsheet S matrix of superstrings on an AdS3xS3xT4 NS-NS background in uniform light-cone gauge. We argue that scattering is given by a CDD factor that is non-trivial only between opposite-chirality particles, yielding a spin-chain-like Bethe Ansatz. Our proposal reproduces the spectrum of non-protected states computed from the Wess-Zumino-Witten description and the perturbative tree-level S matrix. This suggests that the model is an integrable deformation of a free theory similar to those arising from the T-Tbar composite operator., Comment: 6 pages; v2: typos fixed, footnote [46] added

We continue the study of four-point correlation functions by the hexagon tessellation approach initiated in 1611.05436 and 1611.05577. We consider planar tree-level correlation functions in $\mathcal{N} = 4$ supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory involving two non-protected operators. We find that, in order to reproduce the field theory result, it is necessary to include $SU(N)$ colour factors in the hexagon formalism; moreover, we find that the hexagon approach as it stands is naturally tailored to the single-trace part of correlation functions, and does not account for multi-trace admixtures. We discuss how to compute correlators involving double-trace operators, as well as more general $1/N$ effects; in particular we compute the whole next-to-leading order in the large-$N$ expansion of tree-level BMN two-point functions by tessellating a torus with punctures. Finally, we turn to the issue of "wrapping", L\"uscher-like corrections. We show that $SU(N)$ colour-dressing reproduces an earlier empirical rule for incorporating single-magnon wrapping, and we provide a direct interpretation of such wrapping processes in terms of $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric Feynman diagrams., Comment: 42 pages, typos corrected

We define and study various tensorial generalizations of the Gross-Neveu model in two dimensions, that is, models with four-fermion interactions and $G^3$ symmetry, where we take either $G=U(N)$ or $G=O(N)$. Such models can also be viewed as two-dimensional generalizations of the Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev model, or more precisely of its tensorial counterpart introduced by Klebanov and Tarnopolsky, which is in part our motivation for studying them. Using the Schwinger-Dyson equations at large-$N$, we discuss the phenomenon of dynamical mass generation and possible combinations of couplings to avoid it. For the case $G=U(N)$, we introduce an intermediate field representation and perform a stability analysis of the vacua. It turns out that the only apparently viable combination of couplings that avoids mass generation corresponds to an unstable vacuum. The stable vacuum breaks $U(N)^3$ invariance, in contradiction with the Coleman-Mermin-Wagner theorem, but this is an artifact of the large-$N$ expansion, similar to the breaking of continuous chiral symmetry in the chiral Gross-Neveu model., Comment: 45 pages, 9 figures; v2: new discussion of beta function and IR fixed point in d=2-\epsilon (section 3.2 and appendix C), minor corrections, and references added; v3: minor corrections (mainly concerning figures 3 and 4)

We derive the protected closed-string spectra of AdS3/CFT2 dual pairs with 16 supercharges at arbitrary values of the string tension and of the three-form fluxes. These follow immediately from the all-loop Bethe equations for the spectra of the integrable worldsheet theories. Further, representing the underlying integrable systems as spin chains, we find that their dynamics involves length-changing interactions and that protected states correspond to gapless excitations above the Berenstein-Maldacena-Nastase vacuum. In the case of AdS3 x S3 x T4 the degeneracies of such operators precisely match those of the dual CFT2 and the supergravity spectrum. On the other hand, we find that for AdS3 x S3 x S3 x S1 there are fewer protected states than previous supergravity calculations had suggested. In particular, protected states have the same su(2) charge with respect to the two three-spheres., Comment: 37 pages; v2: 40 pages, discussion of wrapping effects added (section 8), as accepted by JHEP

We consider a class of planar tree-level four-point functions in N=4 SYM in a special kinematic regime: one BMN operator with two scalar excitations and three half-BPS operators are put onto a line in configuration space; additionally, for the half-BPS operators a co-moving frame is chosen in flavour space. In configuration space, the four-punctured sphere is naturally triangulated by tree-level planar diagrams. We demonstrate on a number of examples that each tile can be associated with a modified hexagon form-factor in such a way as to efficiently reproduce the tree-level four-point function. Our tessellation is not of the OPE type, fostering the hope of finding an independent, integrability-based approach to the computation of planar four-point functions., Comment: 10 pages, 2 figures

Integrability is believed to underlie the AdS3/CFT2 correspondence with sixteen supercharges. We elucidate the role of massless modes within this integrable framework. Firstly, we find the dressing factors that enter the massless and mixed-mass worldsheet S matrix. Secondly, we derive a set of all-loop Bethe Equations for the closed strings, determine their symmetries and weak-coupling limit. Thirdly, we investigate the underlying Yangian symmetry in the massless sector and show that it fits into the general framework of Yangian integrability. In addition, we compare our S matrix in the near-relativistic limit with recent perturbative worldsheet calculations of Sundin and Wulff., Comment: 69 pages, 12 figures

We introduce a series of articles reviewing various aspects of integrable models relevant to the AdS/CFT correspondence. Topics covered in these reviews are: classical integrability, Yangian symmetry, factorized scattering, the Bethe ansatz, the thermodynamic Bethe ansatz, and integrable structures in (conformal) quantum field theory. In the present article we highlight how these concepts have found application in AdS/CFT, and provide a brief overview of the material contained in this series., Comment: v2, published version

We analyze the spectrum of perturbative closed strings on AdS3 x S3 x T4 with Ramond-Ramond flux using integrable methods. By solving the crossing equations we determine the massless and mixed-mass dressing factors of the worldsheet S matrix and derive the Bethe equations. Using these, we construct the underlying integrable spin chain and show that it reproduces the reducible spin chain conjectured at weak coupling in arXiv:1211.1952. We find that the string-theory massless modes are described by gapless excitations of the spin chain. The resulting degeneracy of vacua matches precisely the protected supergravity spectrum found by de Boer., Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures

Basso, Komatsu and Vieira recently proposed an all-loop framework for the computation of three-point functions of single-trace operators of ${\cal N}=4$ super-Yang-Mills, the "hexagon program". This proposal results in several remarkable predictions, including the three-point function of two protected operators with an unprotected one in the $SU(2)$ and $SL(2)$ sectors. Such predictions consist of an "asymptotic" part---similar in spirit to the asymptotic Bethe Ansatz of Beisert and Staudacher for two-point functions---as well as additional finite-size "wrapping" L\"uscher-like corrections. The focus of this paper is on such wrapping corrections, which we compute at three-loops in the $SL(2)$ sector. The resulting structure constants perfectly match the ones obtained in the literature from four-point correlators of protected operators., Comment: 18 pages, 3 tables; v2: note added, ref. added, (some) misprints corrected; v3: more ref. added, more misprints corrected

We investigate type IIB strings on $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times \mathrm{S}^3\times \mathrm{S}^3\times\mathrm{S}^1$ with mixed Ramond-Ramond (R-R) and Neveu-Schwarz-Neveu-Schwarz (NS-NS) flux. By suitably gauge-fixing the closed string Green-Schwarz (GS) action of this theory, we derive the off-shell symmetry algebra and its representations. We use these to determine the non-perturbative worldsheet S-matrix of fundamental excitations in the theory. The analysis involves both massive and massless modes in complete generality. The S-matrix we find involves a number of phase factors, which in turn satisfy crossing equations that we also determine. We comment on the nature of the heaviest modes of the theory, but leave their identification either as composites or bound-states to a future investigation., Comment: 42 pages, Mathematica file included

In the context of the AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$ correspondence, we investigate the Higgs branch CFT$_2$. Witten showed that states localised near the small instanton singularity can be described in terms of vector multiplet variables. This theory has a planar, weak-coupling limit, in which anomalous dimensions of single-trace composite operators can be calculated. At one loop, the calculation reduces to finding the spectrum of a spin-chain with nearest-neighbour interactions. This CFT$_2$ spin-chain matches precisely the one that was previously found as the weak-coupling limit of the integrable system describing the AdS$_3$ side of the duality. We compute the one-loop dilatation operator in a non-trivial compact subsector and show that it corresponds to an integrable spin-chain Hamiltonian. This provides the first direct evidence of integrability on the CFT$_2$ side of the correspondence., Comment: 29 pages; v2: improved presentation and discussion, computations and results unchanged