Permutation orbifolds of heterotic Gepner models

We study orbifolds by permutations of two identical N=2$N=2$ minimal models within the Gepner construction of four-dimensional heterotic strings. This is done using the new N=2$N=2$ supersymmetric permutation orbifold building blocks we have recently developed. We compare our results with the old method of modding out the full string partition function. The overlap between these two approaches is surprisingly small, but whenever a comparison can be made we find complete agreement. The use of permutation building blocks allows us to use the complete arsenal of simple current techniques that is available for standard Gepner models, vastly extending what could previously be done for permutation orbifolds. In particular, we consider (0,2)$(0,2)$ models, breaking of SO(10)$\mathit{SO}(10)$ to subgroups, weight-lifting for the minimal models and B-L lifting. Some previously observed phenomena, for example concerning family number quantization, extend to this new class as well, and in the lifted models three-family models occur with abundance comparable to two or four.     

A mini-landscape of exact MSSM spectra in heterotic orbifolds

We explore a “fertile patch” of the heterotic landscape based on a Z₆-II${\mathbb{Z}}_6\text{-II}$ orbifold with SO(10) and E₆ local GUT structures. We search for models allowing for the exact MSSM spectrum. Our result is that of order 100 out of a total 3×¹⁰⁴$3\times {10}^4$ inequivalent models satisfy this requirement.     

Gauge couplings in four-dimensional type I string orbifolds

We compute threshold effects to gauge couplings in four-dimensional _N orientifold models of type I strings with GN = 2 and GN = 1 supersymmetry, and study their dependence on the geometric moduli. We also compute the tree-level (disk) couplings of the open sector gauge fields to the twisted closed string moduli of the orbifold in various models and study their effects and that of the one-loop threshold corrections on gauge coupling unification. We interpret the results from the (supergravity) effective theory point of view and comment on the conjectured heterotic-type I duality.     

Gauge symmetries of electroweak interactions

By considering the symmetries associated with baryon number and lepton number conservation as gauge symmetries, the underlying gauge symmetry of weak electromagnetic interactions is shown to beSU(2) _L ×U(1)×U(1)Baryon×U(1)_Lepton. If right-handed currents exist on a par with the observed left-handed ones, then the full symmetry of electroweak interactions that emerges isSU(2)_L×SU(2)_R×U(1)_Baryon×U(1)_Lepton. These symmetries offer a rich spectrum of massive neutral gauge bosons, one of which is the massive neutral boson of the standardSU(2) _L ×U(1) _Y model.     

Gauge symmetries in 2D field theory

A simple algorithm is proposed for constructing generators of gauge symmetry as well as reducibility relations for arbitrary systems of partial differential equations in two dimensions.     

Chirped photonic crystal with different symmetries for asymmetric light propagation

In the present paper, we have carried out analysis of asymmetric light propagation in a chirped photonic crystal waveguide. The designed structures have hexagonal arrangement and square arrangement of silicon rods in air substrate. Dimensions of the defect rods are tailored, so that the proposed design structure works as an optical isolator. The transmission analysis of the structure reveals that it can act as an optical diode. We have plotted the extinction ratio and transmission analysis graphs for the structure, and it has been observed that the maximum output is obtained for telecom wavelength of 1.55 μm. Dispersion curves are obtained using the plane wave expansion method, and the transmission is simulated using finite element method. The proposed structures are applicable for photonic integrated circuits due to their simple and clear operating principle.     

Sphalerons on orbifolds

In this work, we study the electroweak sphalerons in a 5D background, where the fifth dimension lies on an interval. We consider two specific cases: flat space-time and the anti-de Sitter space-time compactified on S ¹/Z ₂. In our work, we take the SU(2) gauge–Higgs model, where the gauge fields reside in the 5D bulk; but the Higgs doublet is confined in one brane. We find that the results in this model are close to those of the 4D Standard Model (SM). The existence of the warp effect, as well as the heaviness of the gauge Kaluza–Klein modes make the results extremely close to the SM ones.     

Equivariant quantization of orbifolds

Equivariant quantization is a new theory that highlights the role of symmetries in the relationship between classical and quantum dynamical systems. These symmetries are also one of the reasons for the recent interest in quantization of singular spaces, orbifolds, stratified spaces, etc. In this work, we prove the existence of an equivariant quantization for orbifolds. Our construction combines an appropriate desingularization of any Riemannian orbifold by a foliated smooth manifold, with the foliated equivariant quantization that we built in Poncin et al. (2009) [19]. Further, we suggest definitions of the common geometric objects on orbifolds, which capture the nature of these spaces and guarantee, together with the properties of the mentioned foliated resolution, the needed correspondences between singular objects of the orbifold and the respective foliated objects of its desingularization.     

Global anomalies on orbifolds

Communicated by A. Jaffe     

Global anomalies on orbifolds

We consider global anomalies for heterotic string theory formulated on orbifolds. The vanishing of certain characteristic classes in group cohomology provides sufficient conditions for the absence of global anomalies. For abelian orbifolds level matching implies these cohomology conditions, so suffices for the absence of anomalies. For nonabelian orbifolds level matching does not suffice, and there are additional constraints. We give some examples to illustrate these new constraints.The first author is partially supported by an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship. The second author is supported in part by the NSF contract no. PHY 82-15249, and in part by a fellowship from the Harvard Society of Fellows