BRST cohomology in classical mechanics

The classical (non-quantum) cohomology of the Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin (BRST) symmetry in phase space is defined and worked out. No group action for the gauge transformations is assumed. The results cover, therefore, the general case of an open algebra and are valid off-shell. Each cohomology class contains all BRST invariant functions with fixed ghost number (an integer) which differ from each other by a BRST variation. If the ghost number is negative there is only the trivial class whose elements are equivalent to zero. If the ghost number is positive or zero there is a bijective correspondence between the BRST classes and those of the exterior derivative along the gauge orbits. These gauge orbits lie in the phase space surface on which the gauge generators are constrained to vanish. The BRST invariant functions of ghost numberp are then related to closedp-forms along the orbits. The addition of a BRST variation corresponds to the addition of an exact form. Some comments about the quantum case are included. The physical meaning of the classes with ghost number greater than zero is not discussed.Chercheur qualifié du Fonds National de la Recherche Scientifique (Belgium)     

A topological characterization of classical BRST cohomology

The recent identification of classical BRST cohomology with the vertical cohomology of a certain fibration is used to compute it in terms of the classical observables and the topology of the gauge orbits. When the gauge orbits are compact and orientable, a duality theorem is exhibited.     

Generalized classical BRST cohomology and reduction of Poisson manifolds

In this paper, we formulate a generalization of the classical BRST construction which applies to the case of the reduction of a Poisson manifold by a submanifold. In the case of symplectic reduction, our procedure generalizes the usual classical BRST construction which only applies to symplectic reduction of a symplectic manifold by a coisotropic submanifold, i.e. the case of reducible first class constraints. In particular, our procedure yields a method to deal with second-class constraints. We construct the BRST complex and compute its cohomology. BRST cohomology vanishes for negative dimension and is isomorphic as a Poisson algebra to the algebra of smooth functions on the reduced Poisson manifold in zero dimension. We then show that in the general case of reduction of Poisson manifolds, BRST cohomology cannot be identified with the cohomology of vertical differential forms.Address after September 1992     

Explicit construction of the classical BRST charge for nonlinear algebras

We give an explicit formula for the Becchi-Rouet-Stora-Tyutin (BRST) charge associated with Poisson superalgebras. To this end, we split the master equation for the BRST charge into a pair of equations such that one of themis equivalent to the original one and find a solution to this equation. The solution possesses a graphical representation in terms of diagrams.     

BRST cohomology of the fermionic string

The BRST cohomology of the first-quantized fermionic string (Ramond model) is explicitly computed by using methods developed in a previous letter. The infinite degeneracy due to the commuting ghost zero mode is shown to be spurious by extending to the BRSt context an argument originally due to Corrigan and Goddard.     

BRST cohomology of the super-Virasoro Algebras

We study the superextension of the semi-infinite cohomology theory of the Virasoro Algebra. In particular, we examine the BRST complex with coefficients in the Fock Space of the RNS superstring. We prove a theorem of vanishing cohomology, and establish the unitary equivalence between a positive definite transversal space, a physical subspace and the zeroth cohomology group. The cohomology of a subcomplex is identified as the covariant equivalent of the well-known GSO subspace. An exceptional case to the vanishing theorem is discussed.Supported by NSF Grant DMS-8703581     

Classical states and the BRST charge

The role played by the BRST-charge in isolating the physical states in a classical first-class constrained system is analysed. Contrary to popular belief, the cohomological argument used to characterize the physical observables in such a system does not extend to the classical states. It is shown that, in order to recover the physical states, the BRST-charge must be augmented with a new charge, of ghost number minus one, constructed out of a set of gauge fixing conditions for the original constraints. The relevance of this construction to the quantum theory is discussed.     

Geometric quantization of the BRST charge

In the first half of this paper (Sects. 1–4) we generalise the standard geometric quantization procedure to symplectic supermanifolds. In the second half (Sects. 5, 6) we apply this to two examples that exhibit classical BRST symmetry, i.e., we quantize the BRST charge and the ghost number. More precisely, in the first example we consider the reduced symplectic manifold obtained by symplectic reduction from a free group action with Ad^*-equivariant moment map; in the second example we consider a foliated configuration space, whose cotangent bundle admits the construction of a BRST charge associated to this foliation. We show that the classical BRST symmetry can be described in terms of a hamiltonian supergroup action on the extended phase space, and that geometric quantization gives us a super-unitary representation of this supergroup. Finally we point out how these results are related to reduction at the quantum level, as compared with the reduction at the classical level.Research supported by the Dutch Organization for Scientific Research (NWO)     

BRST cohomology and highest weight vectors. I

We initiate a program to study certain recent problems in non-compact coset CFT by the BRST approach. We derive a reduction formula for the BRST cohomology by making use of a twisting by highest weight modules. As illustrations, we apply the formula to the bosonic string model and a rank one non-compact coset model [DPL]. Our formula provides a completely new approach to non-compact coset construction.Partially supported by NSF Grant DMS-8703581     

All free string theories are theories of BRST cohomology

The fully gauge-invariant theory of the free open (super) strings is generalized to treat closed (super) strings in the BRST formalism. It is shown that the actions for all theories can be written in the form (Φ,Q_BΦ) using the BRST charge Q_B and the string functional Φ, if the inner product is interpreted appropriately with necessary ghost insertions. Also is shown that consistent truncations of our actions recover all known covariant formulations of (super) strings.     

String loop effect on the BRST charge

An effective BRST charge Q_BRST which incorporates the string one-loop corrections is presented for the closed basonic string in an arbitrary background. The effective σ-model action which leads to such a Q_BRST is obtained and some consequences are discussed.     

Irreducible Freedman‐Townsend vertex and Hamiltonian BRST cohomology

The irreducible Freedman‐Townsend vertex is derived by means of the Hamiltonian deformation procedure based on local BRST cohomology.     

BRST model for equivariant cohomology and representatives for the equivariant thom class

In this paper the BRST formalism for topological field theories is studied in a mathematical setting. The BRST operator is obtained as a member of a one parameter family of operators connecting the Weil model and the Cartan model for equivariant cohomology. Furthermore, the BRST operator is identified as the sum of an equivariant derivation and its Fourier transform. Using this, the Mathai-Quillen representative for the Thom class of associated vector bundles is obtained as the Fourier transform of a simple BRST closed element.Supported by the SV FOM/SMC Mathematical Physics, The Netherlands     

String center of mass operator and its effect on BRST cohomology

We consider the theory of bosonic closed strings on the flat background ℝ^25,1. We show how the BRST complex can be extended to a complex where the string center of mass operator,x ₀ ^μ is well defined. We investigate the cohomology of the extended complex. We demonstrate that this cohomology has a number of interesting features. Unlike in the standard BRST cohomology, there is no doubling of physical states in the extended complex. The cohomology of the extended complex is more physical in a number of aspects related to the zero-momentum states. In particular, we show that the ghost number one zero-momentum cohomology states are in one to one correspondence with the generators of the global symmetries of the backgroundi.e., the Poincaré algebra. Supported in part by funds provided by the U.S. Department of Energy (D.O.E.) under cooperative agreement #DF-FC02-94ER40818     

Propagation and ghosts in the classical kagome antiferromagnet

We investigate the classical spin dynamics of the kagome antiferromagnet by combining Monte Carlo and spin dynamics simulations. We show that this model has two distinct low temperature dynamical regimes, both sustaining propagative modes. The expected gauge invariance type of the low energy, low temperature, out-of-plane excitations is also evidenced in the nonlinear regime. A detailed analysis of the excitations allows us to identify ghosts in the dynamical structure factor, i.e., propagating excitations with a strongly reduced spectral weight. We argue that these dynamical extinction rules are of geometrical origin.     

Fock representations and BRST cohomology inSL(2) current algebra

We investigate the structure of the Fock modules overA ₁ ⁽¹⁾ introduced by Wakimoto. We show that irreducible highest weight modules arise as degree zero cohomology groups in a BRST-like complex of Fock modules. Chiral primary fields are constructed as BRST invariant operators acting on Fock modules. As a result, we obtain a free field representation of correlation functions of theSU(2) WZW model on the plane and on the torus. We also consider representations of fractional level arising in Polyakov's 2D quantum gravity. Finally, we give a geometrical, Borel-Weil-like interpretation of the Wakimoto construction.     

Existence,uniqueness, and local stability for the Einstein-Maxwell-Boltzman system

An existence and uniqueness theorem of the solution of the Cauchy problem for the coupled Einstein-Maxwell-Boltzman system is proven, in an appropriate Sobolev space for the potentials, and weighted Sobolev space for the distribution function. The proof relies on a priori estimates for the collision operator previously established by D.B., and for the solution of the Einstein-Maxwell-Liouville system by Y.C.B. It is also proved here that the solution depends continuously on the data.