arXiv subjects

Marcel R. R. Hughes

Publications and source records attributed to Marcel R. R. Hughes.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

The Resolved Elliptic Genus and the D1-D5 CFT

This paper is a follow-up to the short paper arXiv:2509.19425, greatly expanding the discussion with examples and providing derivations and justifications of results presented there. We introduce a new supersymmetry index for the D1-D5 CFT on $T^4$, which we call the resolved elliptic genus (REG). It is a one-parameter generalisation of the standard supersymmetry index, the modified elliptic genus (MEG), and arises naturally in the free symmetric orbifold description of the theory within a new formalism, based on Schur-Weyl duality, that we develop. In this formalism, the Hilbert space of the symmetric orbifold CFT is decomposed into symmetry sectors in which the structure of the states contributing to the MEG is transparent. By examining the action of the supercharge deformed by an exactly marginal operator on the relevant symmetry algebra, we propose a superselection rule governing the lifting process of BPS states, and use it to construct the REG by summing only over those symmetry sectors that can mix according to this rule. The REG exhibits detailed agreement between the CFT and supergravity below the black-hole threshold, a regime in which the MEG is essentially trivial. Above the threshold, the REG is dominated by black-hole microstates, which are now distributed amongst distinct sectors that are invisible to the MEG. We expect both the new formalism and the REG to provide useful new tools for studying the structure of black-hole microstates. In particular, we comment on their possible relevance to the fortuity program for understanding black-hole microstates within CFT.

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arXiv2026

Towering Gravitons in AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$

BPS states in holographic CFTs are usually classified into supergravitons, namely BPS fluctuations around empty AdS, and black-hole microstates, which appear above an energy threshold. In AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$, however, this picture is incomplete because of additional degrees of freedom, called singletons, associated with boundary diffeomorphisms. We present a general procedure for extending the BPS spectrum of supergravitons by dressing them with singletons, thereby defining a generalized, gravity-sector Hilbert space that admits decomposition into affine multiplets of the full superconformal algebra. This extends the procedure previously proposed in arXiv:2505.14888 which was applicable only at low levels, by removing that limitation. We apply the new procedure to the D1-D5 CFT ${\rm Sym}^N(T^4)$ and explicitly construct affine multiplets in the gravity sector for the $N=2$ theory up to level $h=2$. We find that, at the free orbifold point, the gravity-sector spectrum agrees with the CFT up to $h=\frac12$. Upon turning on a deformation, however, states at $h=1$ lift and the agreement improves to $h=\frac32$. Interestingly, the lifting occurs between states in the gravity sector, involving mixtures of supergravitons and singletons, and stringy states. We conjecture that, upon deformation, the gravity-sector Hilbert space becomes the monotone Hilbert space while its complement becomes the fortuitous Hilbert space.

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arXiv2026

A New Supersymmetry Index for the D1-D5 CFT

We propose a new supersymmetry index for the D1-D5 CFT for $T^4$, relevant to the AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$ correspondence. In a novel formulation of symmetric orbifold CFTs based on the Schur-Weyl duality, we show how this index can be naturally described and its protection is argued based on the detailed nature of exactly marginal operators in these theories. This index is a one-parameter generalization of the standard index and gives more fine-grained information about the structure of microstates than previously available. We demonstrate precise matching of the new index between supergravity and CFT below the black-hole threshold, where the standard index -- the modified elliptic genus -- is trivial. Above the threshold, we uncover a decomposition of black-hole microstates into distinct sectors, invisible to the modified elliptic genus.

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arXiv2025

Fortuity and Supergravity

BPS states in holographic CFTs naturally split into those describing black holes in the bulk and those that do not, with black hole states only existing above a certain energy threshold. In the context of the AdS$_3$/CFT$_2$ duality this can be seen from the agreement of the CFT and supergraviton supersymmetric indices up to a certain central charge-scaling conformal dimension. However, there also exist additional smooth horizonless bulk configurations called singletons that have not been previously accounted for when distinguishing black hole states from non-black hole states. These singletons describe bulk degrees of freedom that are non-trivial on the AdS$_3$ boundary. From a detailed analysis of BPS states in the D1-D5 system we identify singleton states in $\mathrm{Sym}^N(T^4)$ and $\mathrm{Sym}^N(K3)$ and explicitly incorporate them into a generalised supergraviton index for low levels for the case of $N=2$, leading to an enhanced matching with the CFT index in the case of $T^4$. Singleton states are monotone and, under the assumption that together with supergraviton states they span the monotone Hilbert space, the generalised supergraviton index represents the full monotone index. This allows us to define fortuitous indices for these theories and for $\mathrm{Sym}^2(K3)$ we construct the first explicit fortuitous states.

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arXiv2023

Lifting of superconformal descendants in the D1-D5 CFT

We consider D1-D5-P states in the untwisted sector of the D1-D5 orbifold CFT where we excite one copy of the seed CFT with a left-moving superconformal descendant. When the theory is deformed away from this region of moduli space these states can `lift', despite being BPS at the orbifold point. For descendants formed from the supersymmetry $G^α_{\!\dot{A},-s}$ and R-symmetry $J^a_{-n}$ current modes we obtain explicit results for the expectation value of the lifts for various subfamilies of states at second order in the deformation parameter. A smooth $\sim\sqrt{h}$ behaviour is observed in the lifts of these subfamilies for large dimensions. Using covering space Ward identities we then find a compact expression for the lift of the above $J^a_{-n}$ descendant states valid for arbitrary dimensions. In the large-dimension limit this lift scales as $\sim\sqrt{h}\,$, strengthening the conjecture that this is a universal property of the lift of D1-D5-P states. We observe that the lift is not simply a function of the total dimension, but depends on how the descendant level is partitioned amongst modes.

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arXiv2023

Lifting of two-mode states in the D1-D5 CFT

We consider D1-D5-P states in the untwisted sector of the D1-D5 orbifold CFT where one copy of the seed CFT has been excited by a pair of oscillators, each being either bosonic or fermionic. While such states are BPS at the orbifold point, they will in general `lift' as the theory is deformed towards general values of the couplings. We compute the expectation value of this lift at second order in the deformation parameter for the above mentioned states. We write this lift in terms of a fixed number of nested contour integrals on a given integrand; this integrand depends on the mode numbers of the oscillators in the state. We evaluate these integrals to obtain the explicit value of the lift for various subfamilies of states. At large mode numbers one observes a smooth increase of the lift with the dimension of the state $h$; this increase appears to follow a $\sim \sqrt{h}$ behavior similar to that found analytically in earlier computations for other classes of states.

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arXiv2022

Universal lifting in the D1-D5 CFT

We consider D1-D5-P states in the untwisted sector of the D1-D5 orbifold CFT where one copy of the seed CFT has been excited with a left-moving superconformal primary. Despite being BPS at the orbifold point, such states can `lift' as the theory is deformed away from this point in moduli space. We compute this lifting at second order in the deformation parameter for arbitrary left-moving dimension $h$ of this class of states. This result displays an interesting universality since the lifting does not depend on the details of the superconformal primary; it depends only on the dimension. In the large-dimension limit the lift scales as $\sqrt{h}\,$; it is observed that such scaling appears to be a universal property of the lift of D1-D5-P states.

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arXiv2021

Contrasting the fuzzball and wormhole paradigms for black holes

We examine an interesting set of recent proposals describing a `wormhole paradigm' for black holes. These proposals require that in some effective variables, semiclassical low-energy dynamics emerges at the horizon. We prove the `effective small corrections theorem' to show that such an effective horizon behavior is not compatible with the requirement that the black hole radiate like a piece of coal as seen from outside. This theorem thus concretizes the fact that the proposals within the wormhole paradigm require some nonlocality linking the hole and its distant radiation. We try to illustrate various proposals for nonlocality by making simple bit models to encode the nonlocal effects. In each case, we find either nonunitarity of evolution in the black hole interior or a nonlocal Hamiltonian interaction between the hole and infinity; such an interaction is not present for burning coal. We examine recent arguments about the Page curve and observe that the quantity that is argued to follow the Page curve of a normal body is not the entanglement entropy but a different quantity. It has been suggested that this replacement of the quantity to be computed arises from the possibility of topology change in gravity which can generate replica wormholes. We examine the role of topology change in quantum gravity but do not find any source of connections between different replica copies in the path integral for the Rényi entropy. We also contrast the wormhole paradigm with the fuzzball paradigm, where the fuzzball does radiate like a piece of coal. Just as in the case of a piece of coal, the fuzzball does not have low-energy semiclassical dynamics at its surface at energies $E\sim T$ (effective dynamics at energies $E\gg T$ is possible under the conjecture of fuzzball complementarity, but these $E\gg T$ modes have no relevance to the Page curve or the information paradox).

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arXiv2021

Holographic correlators with multi-particle states

We derive the connected tree-level part of 4-point holographic correlators in AdS$_3\times S^3\times \mathcal{M}$ (where ${\cal M}$ is $T^4$ or $K3$) involving two multi-trace and two single-trace operators. These connected correlators are obtained by studying a heavy-heavy-light-light correlation function in the formal limit where the heavy operators become light. These results provide a window into higher-point holographic correlators of single-particle operators. We find that the correlators involving multi-trace operators are compactly written in terms of Bloch-Wigner-Ramakrishnan functions -- particular linear combinations of higher-order polylogarithm functions. Several consistency checks of the derived expressions are performed in various OPE channels. We also extract the anomalous dimensions and 3-point couplings of the non-BPS double-trace operators of lowest twist at order $1/c$ and find some positive anomalous dimensions at spin zero and two in the K3 case.

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arXiv2021

The Regge limit of AdS$_3$ holographic correlators with heavy states: towards the black hole regime

We examine the Regge limit of holographic 4-point correlation functions in AdS$_3\times S^3$ involving two heavy and two light operators. In this kinematic regime such correlators can be reconstructed from the bulk phase shift accumulated by the light probe as it traverses the geometry dual to the heavy operator. We work perturbatively -- but to arbitrary orders -- in the ratio of the heavy operator's conformal dimension to the dual CFT${}_2$'s central charge, thus going beyond the low order results of arXiv:1812.03120 and arXiv:2007.12118. In doing so, we derive all-order relations between the bulk phase shift and the Regge limit OPE data of a class of heavy-light multi-trace operators exchanged in the cross-channel. Furthermore, we analyse two examples for which the relevant 4-point correlators are known explicitly to all orders: firstly the case of heavy operators dual to AdS${}_3$ conical defect geometries and secondly the case of non-trivial smooth geometries representing microstates of the two-charge D1-D5 black hole.

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arXiv2020

The Regge limit of AdS$_3$ holographic correlators

We study the Regge limit of 4-point AdS$_3 \times S^3$ correlators in the tree-level supergravity approximation and provide various explicit checks of the relation between the eikonal phase derived in the bulk picture and the anomalous dimensions of certain double-trace operators. We consider both correlators involving all light operators and HHLL correlators with two light and two heavy multi-particle states. These heavy operators have a conformal dimension proportional to the central charge and are pure states of the theory, dual to asymptotically AdS$_3 \times S^3$ regular geometries. Deviation from AdS$_3 \times S^3$ is parametrised by a scale $μ$ and is related to the conformal dimension of the dual heavy operator. In the HHLL case, we work at leading order in $μ$ and derive the CFT data relevant to the bootstrap relations in the Regge limit. Specifically, we show that the minimal solution to these equations relevant for the conical defect geometries is different to the solution implied by the microstate geometries dual to pure states.

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