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arXiv · 2511.00144

Twists and Gorms and Antifields, oh my!

Alex S. Arvanitakis
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Abstract

I define topological twists of supersymmetric field theories in the case when the supercharges involved obey an ``open'' algebra. Using the Batalin-Vilkovisky field-antifield formalism, I construct twisted theories algorithmically from the supersymmetry data, and explain supersymmetric localisation in terms of anticanonical transformations. I also treat equivariant topological twists and explain how BV observables contain the equivariant cohomology of the space of histories. Some results are generalised to theories with two topological supercharges -- such as the ``balanced'' topological field theories of Dijkgraaf and Moore -- using the geometry of ``differential gorms'' of Kochan and \v{S}evera. Finally, I exhibit examples of these constructions, including a $\mathrm{U}(1)$-equivariant topological B-model.

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Alex S. Arvanitakis. 2025-10-31. Twists and Gorms and Antifields, oh my!. https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.00144

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