arXiv subjects

Fotis Farakos

Publications and source records attributed to Fotis Farakos.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2021

de Sitter decay through goldstino evaporation

We study supergravity theories with supersymmetry intrinsically non-linearly realized supported only by four-form flux. We demonstrate that supersymmetry can be restored by the evaporation of the goldstino multiplet. Such procedure requires the existence of a super-extremal 2-brane, in accordance with the WGC, and suggests an imminent decay in de Sitter supergravity, leaving the system to relax in supersymmetric AdS after the transition. In particular, the same decay mechanism also implies that the KKLT de Sitter vacua are short-lived. Our findings thus provide an effective realization of KPV-type of decays within 4D supergravity and in this way may reconcile the nilpotent superfield constructions of de Sitter with some aspects of the swampland program.

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arXiv2021

On the F-term problem and quintessence supersymmetry breaking

Inspired by the stringy quintessence F-term problem we highlight a generic contribution to the effective moduli masses that arises due to kinetic mixings between the moduli and the quintessence sector. We then proceed to discuss few supergravity toy models that accommodate such effect, and point out possible shortcomings. Interestingly, in the standard 2-derivative supergravity action there is no term to mediate the supersymmetry breaking from the kinetic quintessence sector to the gaugini and generate Majorana masses. Therefore we also propose a 2-derivative supersymmetric invariant that plays exactly this role.

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arXiv2020

Classical de Sitter solutions in three dimensions without tachyons?

We continue the study of compactifications of massive IIA supergravity on G2 orientifolds and demonstrate that breaking supersymmetry with anti-D2 and anti-D6 sources leads to 3d theories for which the typical tachyons haunting classical dS solutions can be absent. However for a concrete torus example the meta-stable dS window disappears after a quantization of fluxes and charges. We discuss the prospects of more general G2 compactifications and argue that they could potentially alleviate the tachyon problem by introducing larger tadpole numbers and warped throats. However, exactly those ingredients then seem to push the vacuum towards the brink of perturbative brane-flux decay in the open string sector. This is either a remarkable illustration of the no-dS swampland conjecture or such vacua live in very difficult to control regions of parameter space.

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arXiv2020

No-scale and scale-separated flux vacua from IIA on G2 orientifolds

We discuss flux compactifications of IIA string theory on G2 holonomy spaces with O2/O6-planes to three dimensions and find two classes of solutions: 1) No-scale Minkowski vacua from NSNS 3-form fluxes and RR 4-form fluxes. 2) By adding Romans mass we find AdS$_3$ vacua for which the AdS scale can be decoupled completely from the KK scale while the solution is at tunable weak coupling and large volume. For the AdS$_3$ vacuum we only have a proper 3D description (i.e. smeared orientifold description) of the solution like the 4D analogue of IIA moduli stabilization from fluxes and O6-planes. This 3D description reveals that moduli with non-compact moduli spaces can be stabilized at the classical level. For both types of vacua we can have supersymmetry or not.

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arXiv2020

Three-forms and Fayet-Iliopoulos terms in Supergravity: Scanning Planck mass and BPS domain walls

We embed a new three-form vector multiplet in ${\cal N}=1$ supergravity and we show that it can be used to generate dynamically the Hilbert--Einstein term. We then recast the theory into the standard Freedman model and we argue that a pure Fayet--Iliopoulos term is in tension with the weak gravity conjecture. Finally, we couple the three-form to a super-membrane and study BPS domain walls within matter-coupled supergravity. In these models, the Planck mass takes different values on the domain wall sides.

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arXiv2020

Quintessence from higher curvature supergravity

In this contribution we revisit higher curvature N=1 supergravity and discuss the quintessence phase that can appear due to the $R^4$ terms. In particular we focus on the bosonic supersymmetric completion within the old-minimal and the new-minimal formulations.

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arXiv2019

The 2D Volkov-Akulov model as a $T \bar{T}$ deformation

We show that the two-dimensional $N=(2,2)$ Volkov-Akulov action that describes the spontaneous breaking of supersymmetry is a $T\bar{T}$ deformation of a free fermionic theory. Our findings point toward a possible relation between nonlinear supersymmetry and $T \bar T$ flows.

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arXiv2019

New Fayet-Iliopoulos terms in ${\mathcal N}=2$ supergravity

We present a new type of Fayet-Iliopoulos (FI) terms in ${\mathcal N}=2$ supergravity that do not require the gauging of the $R$-symmetry. We elaborate on the impact of such terms on the vacuum structure of the ${\mathcal N}=2$ theory and compare their properties with the standard Fayet-Iliopoulos terms that arise from gaugings. In particular, we show that, with the use of the new FI terms, models with a single physical ${\mathcal N}=2$ vector multiplet can be constructed that give stable de Sitter vacua.

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arXiv2019

Runaway potentials and a massive goldstino

We study N=1 globally supersymmetric theories on runaway backgrounds arising from scalar potentials with a slope characterized by a scale $M = |V/V'|$. We find that, under mild assumptions, there always exists a massive goldstino in the low energy effective theory. In the simplest models the effective mass of such a fermion is of order $\sqrt{V} / M$, or of order $V / M^2 μ$ when a seesaw mechanism takes place, where $μ$ is a scale that characterizes the masses of other heavy fermions.

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arXiv2019

Aspects of the new Fayet-Iliopoulos terms

We review the properties of the new type of Fayet-Iliopoulos terms that do not require the gauging of the R-symmetry when embedded in N=1 supergravity, and we discuss recent developments.

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arXiv2019

Supersymmetric Born-Infeld actions and new Fayet-Iliopoulos terms

We consider ${\cal N}=1$ supersymmetric Born-Infeld actions that have a second non-linear supersymmetry. We focus on the model proposed by Bagger and Galperin and show that the breaking of the second supersymmetry is sourced by the new Fayet-Iliopoulos D-term. Interpreting such an action as the effective theory of a space-filling (anti) D3-brane leads to an expression for the new Fayet-Iliopoulos parameter in terms of the brane tension and $α'$.

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arXiv2019

Partial ${\cal N}=2$ Supersymmetry Breaking and Deformed Hypermultiplets

We study partial supersymmetry breaking from ${\cal N}=2$ to ${\cal N}=1$ by adding non-linear terms to the ${\cal N}=2$ supersymmetry transformations. By exploiting the necessary existence of a deformed supersymmetry algebra for partial breaking to occur, we systematically use ${\cal N}=2$ projective superspace with central charges to provide a streamlined setup. For deformed ${\cal O}(2)$ and ${\cal O}(4)$ hypermultiplets, besides reproducing known results, we describe new models exhibiting partial supersymmetry breaking with and without higher-derivative interactions.

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arXiv2018

Three-forms, dualities and membranes in four-dimensional supergravity

We consider four-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=1$ supergravity models of a kind appearing in string flux compactifications. It has been recently shown that, by using double three-form multiplets instead of ordinary chiral multiplets, one can promote to dynamical variables (part of) the quantized numbers appearing in the flux-induced superpotential. We show that double three-form multiplets naturally transform under symplectic dualities associated with the special Kähler structure that characterizes their scalar sector. Furthermore, we discuss how to couple membranes which carry arbitrary `electric-magnetic' charges. The complete action is supersymmetric, kappa-symmetric and duality covariant. As an application, we derive the flow equations for BPS domain walls sourced by membranes and give simple analytic examples of their solution.

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arXiv2018

Liberated N=1 Supergravity

We discuss a new interaction for chiral models in four-dimensional ${\cal N}=1$ supergavity. It contains a new arbitrary function in addition to the Kähler potential and superpotential. Its features include linearly realized off-shell supersymmetry, Kähler-Weyl invariance and broken supersymmetry. The corresponding scalar potential is augmented by the arbitrary function which allows freedom in constructing low-energy phenomenological models and inflationary models rooted in supergravity.

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arXiv2018

Fayet-Iliopoulos terms in supergravity without gauged R-symmetry

We construct a supergravity-Maxwell theory with a novel embedding of the Fayet-Iliopoulos D-term, leading to spontaneous supersymmetry breaking. The gauging of the R-symmetry is not required and a gravitino mass is allowed for a generic vacuum. When matter couplings are introduced, an uplift through a positive definite contribution to the scalar potential is obtained. We observe a notable similarity to the $\overline{D3}$ uplift constructions and we give a natural description in terms of constrained multiplets.

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arXiv2018

Three-forms in Supergravity and Flux Compactifications

We present a duality procedure that relates conventional four-dimensional matter-coupled N=1 supergravities to dual formulations in which auxiliary fields are replaced by field-strengths of gauge three-forms. The duality promotes specific coupling constants appearing in the superpotential to vacuum expectation values of the field-strengths. We then apply this general duality to type IIA string compactifications on Calabi-Yau orientifolds with RR fluxes. This gives a new supersymmetric formulation of the corresponding effective four-dimensional theories which includes gauge three-forms.

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arXiv2017

Three-forms, Supersymmetry and String Compactifications

We review a duality procedure that relates standard matter-coupled N=1 supergravity to dual formulations in which auxiliary fields are replaced by field-strengths of gauge three-forms. As examples, we consider the dualization of the rigid Polonyi model and of effective field theories associated with Type IIA string compactifications with fluxes in supergravity.

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arXiv2017

Constrained superfields from inflation to reheating

We construct effective supergravity theories from customized constrained superfields which provide a setup consistent both for the description of inflation and the subsequent reheating processes. These theories contain the minimum degrees of freedom in the bosonic sector required for single-field inflation.

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