arXiv subjects

Federico Faedo

Publications and source records attributed to Federico Faedo.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Holographic reconstruction for defect CFTs from $\mathrm{AdS}_p \times S^q$ spacetimes

We study defects in superconformal field theories using holography, focusing on the precise derivation of the defect observables from supergravity. We consider $\mathrm{AdS}_p \times S^q$ spacetimes fibered over an interval and coupled to higher-form gauge fields as well as scalar fields. We determine the coordinate system in which the defect geometry admits an asymptotically flat boundary and, in this setup, we systematically apply holographic renormalization to compute the fundamental observables of the defect theory. In particular, we derive the one-point correlators of the bulk fields, the holographic stress tensor, and its Ward identities. We implement explicitly this procedure for line and surface defects in five- and six-dimensional Romans supergravity. The relevant geometries are $\mathrm{AdS}_2\times S^2$, $\mathrm{AdS}_2\times S^3$ and $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^2$ backgrounds warped over an interval, preserving four supercharges and asymptotically $\mathrm{AdS}_5$ and $\mathrm{AdS}_6$. In each case, we discuss the implications of our results and compare them with the standard literature on defects in conformal field theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2025

Defects in 4d SCFTs from supergravity and holographic renormalization

Type IIB string theory admits Janus solutions connecting $\text{AdS}_5$ vacua. These geometries correspond to interface conformal field theories and are naturally described in five-dimensional supergravity as $\text{AdS}_4$ foliations over an interval. In this work, we introduce a novel type of Janus solution in $\text{AdS}_5$, featuring $\text{AdS}_2 \times S^2$ foliations instead of $\text{AdS}_4$. We interpret these solutions as the supergravity duals of line defects in four-dimensional SCFTs and we discuss their D-brane engineering. Our primary tool is Romans supergravity in five dimensions, which provides a simple Type IIB truncation over $S^5$. Within this framework, under specific conditions, we construct regular solutions interpolating between $\text{AdS}_5$ and $\text{AdS}_2 \times \mathbb{R}^3$. These geometries represent one-parameter deformations of $\text{AdS}_5$ vacua and are characterized by a running profile for two-form gauge potentials and a scalar field in the supergravity bulk. Finally, using holographic renormalization, we explicitly compute the on-shell action of the defect and we discuss the one-point functions in the holographic field theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2024

Branes wrapped on quadrilaterals

We construct new families of supersymmetric AdS$_2\times\mathbb{M}_4$ solutions of $D=6$ gauged supergravity and AdS$_3\times\mathbb{M}_4$ solutions of $D=7$ gauged supergravity, where $\mathbb{M}_4$ are four-dimensional toric orbifolds with four fixed points. These are presented in a unified fashion, that highlights their common underlying geometry. The $D=6$ solutions uplift to massive type IIA and describe the near-horizon limit of D4-branes wrapped on $\mathbb{M}_4$, while the $D=7$ solutions uplift to $D=11$ supergravity and describe the near-horizon limit of M5-branes wrapped on $\mathbb{M}_4$. We reproduce the entropy and gravitational central charge of the two families by extremizing a function constructed gluing the orbifold gravitational blocks proposed in arXiv:2210.16128.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Equivariant volume extremization and holography

In a previous paper two of us (D.M. and A.Z.) proposed that a vast class of gravitational extremization problems in holography can be formulated in terms of the equivariant volume of the internal geometry, or of the cone over it. We substantiate this claim by analysing supergravity solutions corresponding to branes partially or totally wrapped on a four-dimensional orbifold, both in M-theory as well as in type II supergravities. We show that our approach recovers the relevant gravitational central charges/free energies of several known supergravity solutions and can be used to compute these also for solutions that are not known explicitly. Moreover, we demonstrate the validity of previously conjectured gravitational block formulas for M5 and D4 branes. In the case of M5 branes we make contact with a recent approach based on localization of equivariant forms, constructed with Killing spinor bilinears.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Rotating black holes with Nil or SL(2,$\,\mathbb{R}$) horizons

We construct rotating black holes in $N=2$, $D=5$ minimal and matter-coupled gauged supergravity, with horizons that are homogeneous but not isotropic. Such spaces belong to the eight Thurston model geometries, out of which we consider the cases Nil and SL$(2,\mathbb{R})$. In the former, we use the recipe of arXiv:hep-th/0304064 to directly rederive the solution that was obtained by Gutowski and Reall in arXiv:hep-th/0401042 as a scaling limit from a spherical black hole. With the same techniques, the first example of a black hole with SL$(2,\mathbb{R})$ horizon is constructed, which is rotating and one quarter BPS. The physical properties of this solution are discussed, and it is shown that in the near-horizon limit it boils down to the geometry of arXiv:hep-th/0401042, with a supersymmetry enhancement to one half. Dimensional reduction to $D=4$ gives a new solution with hyperbolic horizon to the t$^3$ model that carries both electric and magnetic charges. Moreover, we show how to get a nonextremal rotating Nil black hole by applying a certain scaling limit to Kerr-AdS$_5$ with two equal rotation parameters, which consists in zooming onto the north pole of the S$^2$ over which the S$^3$ is fibered, while boosting the horizon velocity effectively to the speed of light.

hep-th↗

arXiv2023

Branes wrapped on orbifolds and their gravitational blocks

We construct new supersymmetric $\mathrm{AdS}_2\times \mathbb{M}_4$ solutions of $D=6$ gauged supergravity, where $\mathbb{M}_4$ are certain four-dimensional orbifolds. After uplifting to massive type IIA supergravity these correspond to the near-horizon limit of a system of $N$ D4-branes and $N_f$ D8-branes wrapped on $\mathbb{M}_4$. In one class of solutions $\mathbb{M}_4 = Σ_{\mathrm{g}}\ltimesΣ$ is a spindle fibred over a smooth Riemann surface of genus $\mathrm{g}>1$, while in another class $\mathbb{M}_4 = Σ\ltimesΣ$ is a spindle fibred over another spindle. Both classes can be thought of as orbifold generalizations of Hirzebruch surfaces and, in the second case, we describe the solutions in terms of toric geometry. We show that the entropy associated with these solutions is reproduced by extremizing an entropy function obtained by gluing gravitational blocks, using a general recipe for orbifolds that we propose. We also discuss how our prescription can be used to define an off-shell central charge whose extremization reproduces the gravitational central charge of analogous $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times \mathbb{M}_4$ solutions of $D=7$ gauged supergravity, arising from wrapping M5-branes on $\mathbb{M}_4$.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

D4-branes wrapped on a spindle

We construct supersymmetric AdS$_4\timesΣ$ solutions of $D=6$ gauged supergravity, where $Σ$ is a two-dimensional orbifold known as a spindle. These uplift to solutions of massive type IIA supergravity using a general prescription, that we describe. We argue that these solutions correspond to the near-horizon limit of a system of $N_f$ D8-branes, together with $N$ D4-branes wrapped on a spindle, embedded as a holomorphic curve inside a Calabi-Yau three-fold. The dual field theories are $d=3$, ${\cal N }= 2$ SCFTs that arise from a twisted compactification of the $d=5$, ${\cal N}=1$ $USp(2N)$ gauge theory. We show that the holographic free energy associated to these solutions is reproduced by extremizing an off-shell free energy, that we conjecture to arise in the large $N$ limit of the localized partition function of the $d=5$ theories on $S^3\timesΣ$. We formulate a universal proposal for a class of off-shell free energies, whose extremization reproduces all previous results for branes wrapped on spindles, as well as on genus $\mathrm{g}$ Riemann surfaces $Σ_{\mathrm{g}}$. We further illustrate this proposal discussing D4-branes wrapped on $Σ\timesΣ_{\mathrm{g}}$, for which we present a supersymmetric AdS$_2\timesΣ\timesΣ_{\mathrm{g}}$ solution of $D=6$ gauged supergravity along with the associated entropy function.

hep-th↗

arXiv2021

Supersymmetric black holes with spiky horizons

We use the recipe of arXiv:1003.2974 to find half-BPS near-horizon geometries in the t$^3$ model of $N=2$, $D=4$ gauged supergravity, and explicitely construct some new examples. Among these are black holes with noncompact horizons, but also with spherical horizons that have conical singularities (spikes) at one of the two poles. A particular family of them is extended to the full black hole geometry. Applying a double-Wick rotation to the near-horizon region, we obtain solutions with NUT charge that asymptote to curved domain walls with AdS$_3$ world volume. These new solutions may provide interesting testgrounds to address fundamental questions related to quantum gravity and holography.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

New $\mathcal{N}=(0,4)$ AdS$_3$ near-horizons in Type IIB

We construct new families of $\mathcal{N}=(0,4)$ $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^2 \times \tilde S^2 \times S^1$ backgrounds fibred over a 2d Riemann surface in Type IIB string theory. These solutions are obtained by extracting the near-horizon limit of D3-brane box configurations, consisting on D3-D5-NS5 branes ending on D5'-NS5' background branes. We relate our families of solutions to previous $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^2 \times \text{CY}_2$ and $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^3 \times S^2$ solutions to Type IIA recently constructed in the literature. We construct explicit 2d quiver CFTs associated to the D3-brane box configurations, and check that the central charges match the holographic result. We extend our solutions to include D7-branes, and show that a subclass of these solutions can be interpreted in terms of D3-D5-NS5 defect branes embedded in a 5d fixed point theory. This is explicitly realised by linking our solutions to a 6d domain wall that asymptotes locally the $\mathrm{AdS}_6\times S^2 \times Σ_2$ solution T-dual to the Brandhuber-Oz vacuum.

hep-th↗

arXiv2020

Searching for surface defect CFTs within AdS$_3$

We study $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^3/\mathbb{Z}_k\times {\tilde S}^3/\mathbb{Z}_{k'}$ solutions to M-theory preserving $\mathcal{N}=(0,4)$ supersymmetries, arising as near-horizon limits of M2-M5 brane intersections ending on M5'-branes, with both types of five-branes placed on A-type singularities. Solutions in this class asymptote locally to $\mathrm{AdS}_7/\mathbb{Z}_k\times {\tilde S}^3/\mathbb{Z}_{k'}$, and can thus be interpreted as holographic duals to surface defect CFTs within the $\mathcal{N}=(1,0)$ 6d CFT dual to this solution. Upon reduction to Type IIA, we obtain a new class of solutions of the form $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^3/\mathbb{Z}_k\times S^2 \times Σ_2$ preserving (0,4) supersymmetries. We construct explicit 2d quiver CFTs dual to these solutions, describing D2-D4 surface defects embedded within the 6d (1,0) quiver CFT dual to the $\mathrm{AdS}_7/\mathbb{Z}_k$ solution to massless IIA. Finally, in the massive case, we show that the recently constructed $\mathrm{AdS}_3\times S^2\times \mathrm{CY}_2$ solutions with $\mathcal{N}=(0,4)$ supersymmetries gain a defect interpretation when $\mathrm{CY}_2=T^4$ as surface CFTs originating from D2-NS5-D6 defects embedded within the 5d CFT dual to the Brandhuber-Oz $\mathrm{AdS}_6$ background.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Exact charges from heterotic black holes

We derive exact relations to all orders in the $α'$ expansion for the charges of a bound system of heterotic strings, solitonic 5-branes and, optionally, a Kaluza-Klein monopole. The expressions, which differ from those of the zeroth-order supergravity approximation, coincide with the values obtained when only the corrections of quadratic order in curvature are included. Our computation relies on the consistency of string theory as a quantum theory of gravity; the relations follow from the matching of the Wald entropy with the microscopic degeneracy. In the heterotic frame, the higher-curvature terms behave as delocalized sources that introduce a shift between near-horizon and asymptotic charges. On the other hand, when described in terms of lower-dimensional effective fields, the solution carries constant charges over space which coincide with those of the asymptotic heterotic fields. In addition, we describe why the Gauss-Bonnet term, which only captures a subset of the relevant corrections of quadratic order in curvature, in some cases succeeds to reproduce the correct value for the Wald entropy, while fails in others.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Black holes in Sol minore

We consider black holes in five-dimensional $N=2$ $\text{U}(1)$-gauged supergravity coupled to vector multiplets, with horizons that are homogeneous but not isotropic. We write down the equations of motion for electric and magnetic ansätze, and solve them explicitely for the case of pure gauged supergravity with magnetic $\text{U}(1)$ field strength and Sol horizon. The thermodynamics of the resulting solution, which exhibits anisotropic scaling, is discussed. If the horizon is compactified, the geometry approaches asymptotically a torus bundle over AdS$_3$. Furthermore, we prove a no-go theorem that states the nonexistence of supersymmetric, static, Sol-invariant, electrically or magnetically charged solutions with spatial cross-sections modelled on solve\-geometry. Finally, we study the attractor mechanism for extremal static non-BPS black holes with nil- or solvegeometry horizons. It turns out that there are no such attractors for purely electric field strengths, while in the magnetic case there are attractor geometries, where the values of the scalar fields on the horizon are computed by extremization of an effective potential $V_{\text{eff}}$, which contains the charges as well as the scalar potential of the gauged supergravity theory. The entropy density of the extremal black hole is then given by the value of $V_{\text{eff}}$ in the extremum.

hep-th↗

arXiv2019

Rotating black holes in the FI-gauged $N=2$, $D=4$ $\overline{\mathbb{C}\text{P}}^n$ model

We construct supersymmetric black holes with rotation or NUT charge for the $\overline{\mathbb{C}\text{P}}^n$- and the $\text{t}^3$ model of $N=2$, $D=4$ $\text{U}(1)$ FI-gauged supergravity. The solutions preserve 2 real supercharges, which are doubled for their near-horizon geometry. For the $\overline{\mathbb{C}\text{P}}^n$ model we also present a generalization to the nonextremal case, which turns out to be characterized by a Carter-Plebański-type metric, and has $n+3$ independent parameters, corresponding to mass, angular momentum as well as $n+1$ magnetic charges. We discuss the thermodynamics of these solutions, obtain a Christodoulou-Ruffini mass formula, and shew that they obey a first law of thermodynamics and that the product of horizon areas depends on the angular momentum and the magnetic charges only. At least some of the BPS black holes that we obtain may become instrumental for future microscopic entropy computations involving a supersymmetric index.

hep-th↗

arXiv2015

Hairy black holes in N=2 gauged supergravity

We construct black holes with scalar hair in a wide class of four-dimensional N=2 Fayet-Iliopoulos gauged supergravity theories that are characterized by a prepotential containing one free parameter. Considering the truncated model in which only a single real scalar survives, the theory is reduced to an Einstein-scalar system with a potential, which admits at most two AdS critical points and is expressed in terms of a real superpotential. Our solution is static, admits maximally symmetric horizons, asymptotically tends to AdS space corresponding to an extremum of the superpotential, but is disconnected from the Schwarzschild-AdS family. The condition under which the spacetime admits an event horizon is addressed for each horizon topology. It turns out that for hyperbolic horizons the black holes can be extremal. In this case, the near-horizon geometry is AdS_2 x H^2, where the scalar goes to the other, non-supersymmetric, critical point of the potential. Our solution displays fall-off behaviours different from the standard one, due to the fact that the mass parameter $m^2=-2/\ell^2$ at the supersymmetric vacuum lies in a characteristic range $m^2_{BF}\le m^2\le m^2_{\rm BF}+\ell^{-2}$ for which the slowly decaying scalar field is also normalizable. Nevertheless, we identify a well-defined mass for our spacetime, following the prescription of Hertog and Maeda. Quite remarkably, the product of all horizon areas is not given in terms of the asymptotic cosmological constant alone, as one would expect in absence of electromagnetic charges and angular momentum. Our solution shows qualitatively the same thermodynamic behaviour as the Schwarzschild-AdS black hole, but the entropy is always smaller for a given mass and AdS curvature radius. We also find that our spherical black holes are unstable against radial perturbations.

hep-th↗