arXiv subjects

Marco Zagermann

Publications and source records attributed to Marco Zagermann.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2009

On the Cosmology of Type IIA Compactifications on SU(3)-structure Manifolds

We study cosmological properties of type IIA compactifications on orientifolds of SU(3)-structure manifolds with non-vanishing geometric flux. These compactifications give rise to effective 4D N=1 supergravity theories that do not fall under some recently-proven no-go theorems against de Sitter vacua and slow-roll inflation. Focusing on a well-understood class of models based on coset spaces, however, we can use a refined no-go theorem that rules out de Sitter vacua and slow-roll inflation in all but one case. The refined no-go theorem uses the dilaton and a specific linear combination of the Kaehler moduli, which is different from the overall volume modulus. It puts a lower bound on the first slow-roll parameter: epsilon>=2. The only case not ruled out is the manifold SU(2)x SU(2), for which we indeed find critical points with epsilon numerically zero. However, all the points we could find have a tachyon corresponding to an eta-parameter eta<= -2.4.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

Update of D3/D7-Brane Inflation on K3 x T^2/Z_2

We update the D3/D7-brane inflation model on K3 x T^2/Z_2 with branes and fluxes. For this purpose, we study the low energy theory including g_s corrections to the gaugino condensate superpotential that stabilizes the K3 volume modulus. The gauge kinetic function is verified to become holomorphic when the original N=2 supersymmetry is spontaneously broken to N=1 by bulk fluxes. From the underlying classical N=2 supergravity, the theory inherits a shift symmetry which provides the inflaton with a naturally flat potential. We analyze the fate of this shift symmetry after the inclusion of quantum corrections. The field range of the inflaton is found to depend significantly on the complex structure of the torus but is independent of its volume. This allows for a large kinematical field range for the inflaton. Furthermore, we show that the D3/D7 model may lead to a realization of the recent CMB fit by Hindmarsh et al. with an 11% contribution from cosmic strings and a spectral index close to n_s=1. On the other hand, by a slight change of the parameters of the model one can strongly suppress the cosmic string contribution and reduce the spectral index n_s to fit the WMAP5 data in the absence of cosmic strings. We also demonstrate that the inclusion of quantum corrections allows for a regime of eternal D3/D7 inflation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

Generalized Chern-Simons Terms and Chiral Anomalies in N=1 Supersymmetry

The gauging of axionic, Stueckelberg-type, shift symmetries with generalized Chern-Simons terms and the Green-Schwarz mechanism of anomaly cancellation has recently been studied in the context of certain string compactifications and with regard to the phenomenology of unusual variants of Z'-bosons. In this talk, following recent work with De Rydt, Rosseel, Schmidt and Van Proeyen, I summarize how such theories can be reconciled with global and local N=1 supersymmetry. Two simple consistency conditions are shown to encode strong constraints on the allowed anomalies for different types of gauge groups.

hep-th↗

arXiv2008

The effective theory of type IIA AdS4 compactifications on nilmanifolds and cosets

We consider string theory compactifications of the form AdS4 x M6 with orientifold six-planes, where M6 is a six-dimensional compact space that is either a nilmanifold or a coset. For all known solutions of this type we obtain the four-dimensional N=1 low energy effective theory by computing the superpotential, the Kaehler potential and the mass spectrum for the light moduli. For the nilmanifold examples we perform a cross-check on the result for the mass spectrum by calculating it alternatively from a direct Kaluza-Klein reduction and find perfect agreement. We show that in all but one of the coset models all moduli are stabilized at the classical level. As an application we show that all but one of the coset models can potentially be used to bypass a recent no-go theorem against inflation in type IIA theory.

hep-th↗

arXiv2007

Symplectic structure of N=1 supergravity with anomalies and Chern-Simons terms

The general actions of matter-coupled N=1 supergravity have Peccei-Quinn terms that may violate gauge and supersymmetry invariance. In addition, N=1 supergravity with vector multiplets may also contain generalized Chern-Simons terms. These have often been neglected in the literature despite their importance for gauge and supersymmetry invariance. We clarify the interplay of Peccei-Quinn terms, generalized Chern-Simons terms and quantum anomalies in the context of N=1 supergravity and exhibit conditions that have to be satisfied for their mutual consistency. This extension of the previously known N=1 matter-coupled supergravity actions follows naturally from the embedding of the gauge group into the group of symplectic duality transformations. Our results regarding this extension provide the supersymmetric framework for studies of string compactifications with axionic shift symmetries, generalized Chern-Simons terms and quantum anomalies.

hep-th↗

arXiv2006

Gaugino Condensates and D-terms from D7-branes

We investigate, at the microscopic level, the compatibility between D-term potentials from world-volume fluxes on D7-branes and non-perturbative superpotentials arising from gaugino condensation on a different stack of D7-branes. This is motivated by attempts to construct metastable de Sitter vacua in type IIB string theory via D-term uplifts. We find a condition under which the Kaehler modulus, T, of a Calabi-Yau 4-cycle gets charged under the anomalous U(1) on the branes with flux. If in addition this 4-cycle is wrapped by a stack of D7-branes on which gaugino condensation takes place, the question of U(1)-gauge invariance of the (T-dependent) non-perturbative superpotential arises. In this case an index theorem guarantees that strings, stretching between the two stacks, yield additional charged chiral fields which also appear in the superpotential from gaugino condensation. We check that the charges work out to make this superpotential gauge invariant, and we argue that the mechanism survives the inclusion of higher curvature corrections to the D7-brane action.

hep-th↗

arXiv2005

Brane Inflation, Solitons and Cosmological Solutions: I

In this paper we study various cosmological solutions for a D3/D7 system directly from M-theory with fluxes and M2-branes. In M-theory, these solutions exist only if we incorporate higher derivative corrections from the curvatures as well as G-fluxes. We take these corrections into account and study a number of toy cosmologies, including one with a novel background for the D3/D7 system whose supergravity solution can be completely determined. This new background preserves all the good properties of the original model and opens up avenues to investigate cosmological effects from wrapped branes and brane-antibrane annihilation, to name a few. We also discuss in some detail semilocal defects with higher global symmetries, for example exceptional ones, that could occur in a slightly different regime of our D3/D7 model. We show that the D3/D7 system does have the required ingredients to realise these configurations as non-topological solitons of the theory. These constructions also allow us to give a physical meaning to the existence of certain underlying homogeneous quaternionic Kahler manifolds.

hep-th↗

arXiv2005

N=4 "Fake" Supergravity

We study curved and flat BPS-domain walls in 5D, N=4 gauged supergravity and show that their effective dynamics along the flow is described by a generalized form of "fake supergravity". This generalizes previous work in N=2 supergravity and might hint towards a universal behavior of gauged supergravity theories in supersymmetric domain wall backgrounds. We show that BPS-domain walls in 5D, N=4 supergravity can never be curved if they are supported by the supergravity scalar only. Furthermore, a purely Abelian gauge group or a purely semisimple gauge group can never lead to a curved domain wall, and the flat walls for these gaugings always exhibit a runaway behavior.

hep-th↗

arXiv2004

On the fakeness of fake supergravity

We revisit and complete the study of curved BPS-domain walls in matter-coupled 5D, N=2 supergravity and carefully analyse the relation to gravitational theories known as "fake supergravities". We first show that \emph{curved} BPS-domain walls require the presence of non-trivial hypermultiplet scalars, whereas walls that are solely supported by vector multiplet scalars are necessarily \emph{flat}, due to the constraints from very special geometry. We then recover fake supergravity as the effective description of true supergravity where one restricts the attention to the flowing scalar field of a given BPS-domain wall. In general, however, true supergravity can be simulated by fake supergravity at most \emph{locally}, based upon two choices: (i) a suitable adapted coordinate system on the scalar manifold, such that only one scalar field plays a dynamical role, and (ii) a gauge fixing of the SU(2) connection on the quaternionic-Kahler manifold, as this connection does not fit the simple formalism of fake supergravity. Employing these gauge and coordinate choices, the BPS-equations for both vector and hypermultiplet scalars become identical to the fake supergravity equations, once the line of flow is determined by the full supergravity equations.

hep-th↗

arXiv2004

D3/D7 Brane Inflation and Semilocal Strings

Among the inflationary models based on string theory, the D3/D7 model has the advantage that the flatness of the inflaton potential can be protected even with moduli stabilization. However, the Abrikosov-Nielsen-Olesen BPS cosmic strings produced at the end of original D3/D7 inflation lead to an additional contribution to the CMB anisotropy. To make this contribution consistent with the WMAP results one needs an extremely small gauge coupling in the effective D-term inflation model. Such couplings may be difficult to justify in string theory. Here we develop a generalized version of the D3/D7 brane model, which leads to semilocal strings, instead of the topologically stable ANO cosmic strings. We show that the semilocal strings have unbroken supersymmetry when embedded into supergravity with FI terms. The energy of these strings is independent of their thickness. We confirm the existing arguments that strings of such type disappear soon after their formation and do not pose any cosmological problems, for any value of the gauge coupling. This should simplify the task of constructing fully realistic models of D3/D7 inflation.

hep-th↗

arXiv2003

Unified Maxwell-Einstein and Yang-Mills-Einstein Supergravity Theories in Five Dimensions

Unified N=2 Maxwell-Einstein supergravity theories (MESGTs) are supergravity theories in which all the vector fields, including the graviphoton, transform in an irreducible representation of a simple global symmetry group of the Lagrangian. As was established long time ago, in five dimensions there exist only four unified Maxwell-Einstein supergravity theories whose target manifolds are symmetric spaces. These theories are defined by the four simple Euclidean Jordan algebras of degree three. In this paper, we show that, in addition to these four unified MESGTs with symmetric target spaces, there exist three infinite families of unified MESGTs as well as another exceptional one. These novel unified MESGTs are defined by non-compact (Minkowskian) Jordan algebras, and their target spaces are in general neither symmetric nor homogeneous. The members of one of these three infinite families can be gauged in such a way as to obtain an infinite family of unified N=2 Yang-Mills-Einstein supergravity theories, in which all vector fields transform in the adjoint representation of a simple gauge group of the type SU(N,1). The corresponding gaugings in the other two infinite families lead to Yang-Mills-Einstein supergravity theories coupled to tensor multiplets.

hep-th↗

arXiv2003

Effective Actions near Singularities

We study the heterotic string compactified on K3 x T^2 near the line T=U, where the effective action becomes singular due to an SU(2) gauge symmetry enhancement. By `integrating in' the light W^\pm vector multiplets we derive a quantum corrected effective action which is manifestly SU(2) invariant and non-singular. This effective action is found to be consistent with a residual SL(2,Z) quantum symmetry on the line T=U. In an appropriate decompactification limit, we recover the known SU(2) invariant action in five dimensions.

hep-th↗

arXiv2003

Effective Actions Near Singularities: The STU-Model

We derive the low energy effective action of the STU-model in four and five dimensions near the line T=U, where SU(2) gauge symmetry enhancement occurs. By `integrating in' the light W^{\pm} bosons together with their superpartners, the quantum corrected effective action becomes non-singular at T=U and manifestly SU(2) invariant. The four-dimensional theory is found to be consistent with modular invariance and the five-dimensional decompactification limit. This talk concisely summarizes results that have been obtained in collaboration with J. Louis and T. Mohaupt.

hep-th↗

arXiv2002

Orbifolds and Flows from Gauged Supergravity

We examine orbifolds of the IIB string via gauged supergravity. For the gravity duals of the A_{n-1} quiver gauge theories, we extract the massless degrees of freedom and assemble them into multiplets of N=4 gauged supergravity in five dimensions. We examine the embedding of the gauge group into the isometry group of the scalar manifold, as well as the symmetries of the scalar potential. From this we find that there is a large SU(1,n) symmetry group which relates different RG flows in the dual quiver gauge theory. We find that this symmetry implies an extension of the usual duality between ten-dimensional IIB solutions which involves exchanging geometric moduli with background fluxes.

hep-th↗

arXiv2001

Gauged Supergravity and Singular Calabi-Yau Manifolds

Compactifications of M-theory on singular manifolds contain additional charged massless states descending from M-branes wrapped on vanishing cycles. We construct the first explicit example of a complete supergravity Lagrangian that includes such extra states. This is done for a compactification on a Calabi-Yau threefold that develops a genus zero curve of A_1 singularities at the boundary of the Kähler cone with a resulting SU(2) gauge symmetry enhancement. The corresponding SU(2) gauged supergravity Lagrangian includes two charged and two neutral vector multiplets, and turns out to be uniquely fixed by the Calabi-Yau geometry and by the effective ungauged Lagrangian describing the Coulomb branch. One can see explicitly how resolving the singularity corresponds to a supersymmetric Higgs effect in the gauged supergravity description. The elementary transformation relating the two families of smooth Calabi-Yau resolutions of the singularity acts as the SU(2) Weyl twist. The resulting structure appears to be very rigid and is likely to apply to other types of singularities and manifolds as well.

hep-th↗

arXiv2001

General Matter Coupled N=4 Gauged Supergravity in Five Dimensions

We construct the general form of matter coupled N=4 gauged supergravity in five dimensions. Depending on the structure of the gauge group, these theories are found to involve vector and/or tensor multiplets. When self-dual tensor fields are present, they must be charged under a one-dimensional Abelian group and cannot transform non-trivially under any other part of the gauge group. A short analysis of the possible ground states of the different types of theories is given. It is found that AdS ground states are only possible when the gauge group is a direct product of a one-dimensional Abelian group and a semi-simple group. In the purely Abelian, as well as in the purely semi-simple gauging, at most Minkowski ground states are possible. The existence of such Minkowski ground states could be proven in the compact Abelian case.

hep-th↗

arXiv2001

Options for Gauge Groups in Five-Dimensional Supergravity

Motivated by the possibility that physics may be effectively five-dimensional over some range of distance scales, we study the possible gaugings of five-dimensional N=2 supergravity. Using a constructive approach, we derive the conditions that must be satisfied by the scalar fields in the vector, tensor and hypermultiplets if a given global symmetry is to be gaugeable. We classify all those theories that admit the gauging of a compact group that is either Abelian or semi-simple, or a direct product of a semi-simple and an Abelian group. In the absence of tensor multiplets, either the gauge group must be semi-simple or the Abelian part has to be U(1)_R and/or an Abelian isometry of the hyperscalar manifold. On the other hand, in the presence of tensor multiplets the gauge group cannot be semi-simple. As an illustrative exercise, we show how the Standard Model SU(3) X SU(2) X U(1) group may be gauged in five-dimensional N=2 supergravity. We also show how previous special results may be recovered within our general formalism.

hep-th↗

arXiv2001

Gauging the Full R-Symmetry Group in Five-dimensional, N=2 Yang-Mills/Einstein/tensor Supergravity

We show that certain five dimensional, N=2 Yang-Mills/Einstein supergravity theories admit the gauging of the full R-symmetry group, SU(2)_R, of the underlying N=2 Poincare superalgebra. This generalizes the previously studied Abelian gaugings of U(1)_R subgroup of SU(2)_R and completes the construction of the most general vector and tensor field coupled five dimensional N=2 supergravity theories with gauge interactions. The gauging of SU(2)_R turns out to be possible only in special cases, and leads to a new type of scalar potential. For a large class of these theories the potential does not have any critical points.

hep-th↗