Elliptic modular graph forms, equivariant iterated integrals and single-valued elliptic polylogarithms

Abstract

The low-energy expansion of genus-one string amplitudes produces infinite families of non-holomorphic modular forms after each step of integrating over a point on the torus worldsheet which are known as elliptic modular graph forms (eMGFs). We solve the differential equations of eMGFs depending on a single point $z$ and the modular parameter $\tau$ via iterated integrals over holomorphic modular forms which individually transform inhomogeneously under ${\rm SL}_2(\mathbb Z)$. Suitable generating series of these iterated integrals over $\tau$, their complex conjugates and single-valued multiple zeta values (svMZVs) are combined to attain equivariant transformations under ${\rm SL}_2(\mathbb Z)$ such that their components are modular forms. Our generating series of equivariant iterated integrals for eMGFs is related to elliptic multiple polylogarithms (eMPLs) through a gauge transform of the flat Calaque-Enriquez-Etingof connection. By converting iterated $\tau$-integrals to iterated integrals over points on a torus, we arrive at an explicit construction of single-valued eMPLs where all the monodromies in the points cancel. Each single-valued eMPL depending on a single point $z$ is found to be a finite combination of meromorphic eMPLs, their complex conjugates, svMZVs and equivariant iterated Eisenstein integrals. Our generating series determines the latter two admixtures via so-called zeta generators and Tsunogai derivations which act on the two generators $x$, $y$ of a free Lie algebra and where the coefficients of words in $x,y$ define the single-valued eMPLs.