No Arabic abstract
We quantize pure 2d Yang-Mills theory on an arbitrary Riemann surface in the gauge where the field strength is diagonal. Twisted sectors originate, as in Matrix string theory, from permutations of the eigenvalues around homotopically non-trivial loops. These sectors, that must be discarded in the usual quantization due to divergences occurring when two eigenvalues coincide, can be consistently kept if one modifies the action by introducing a coupling of the field strength to the space-time curvature. This leads to a generalized Yang-Mills theory whose action reduces to the usual one in the limit of zero curvature. After integrating over the non-diagonal components of the gauge fields, the theory becomes a free string theory (sum over unbranched coverings) with a U(1) gauge theory on the world-sheet. This is shown to be equivalent to a lattice theory with a gauge group which is the semi-direct product of S_N and U(1)^N. By using well known results on the statistics of coverings, the partition function on arbitrary Riemann surfaces and the kernel functions on surfaces with boundaries are calculated. Extensions to include branch points and non-abelian groups on the world-sheet are briefly commented upon.
We discuss bosonic and supersymmetric Yang-Mills matrix models with compact semi-simple gauge group. We begin by finding convergence conditions for the partition and correlation functions. Moving on, we specialise to the SU(N) models with large N. In both the Yang-Mills and cohomological formulations, we find all quantities which are invariant under the supercharges. Finally, we apply the deformation method of Moore, Nekrasov and Shatashvili directly to the Yang-Mills model. We find a deformation of the action which generates mass terms for all the matrix fields whilst preserving some supersymmetry. This allows us to rigorously integrate over a BRST quartet and arrive at the well known formula of MNS.
We consider two-dimensional Yang-Mills theories on arbitrary Riemann surfaces. We introduce a generalized Yang-Mills action, which coincides with the ordinary one on flat surfaces but differs from it in its coupling to two-dimensional gravity. The quantization of this theory in the unitary gauge can be consistently performed taking into account all the topological sectors arising from the gauge-fixing procedure. The resulting theory is naturally interpreted as a Matrix String Theory, that is as a theory of covering maps from a two-dimensional world-sheet to the target Riemann surface.
This paper deals with various interrelations between strings and surfaces in three dimensional ambient space, two dimensional integrable models and two dimensional and four dimensional decomposed SU(2) Yang-Mills theories. Initially, a spinor version of the Frenet equation is introduced in order to describe the differential geometry of static three dimensional string-like structures. Then its relation to the structure of the su(2) Lie algebra valued Maurer-Cartan one-form is presented; while by introducing time evolution of the string a Lax pair is obtained, as an integrability condition. In addition, it is show how the Lax pair of the integrable nonlinear Schroedinger equation becomes embedded into the Lax pair of the time extended spinor Frenet equation and it is described how a spinor based projection operator formalism can be used to construct the conserved quantities, in the case of the nonlinear Schroedinger equation. Then the Lax pair structure of the time extended spinor Frenet equation is related to properties of flat connections in a two dimensional decomposed SU(2) Yang-Mills theory. In addition, the connection between the decomposed Yang-Mills and the Gauss-Godazzi equation that describes surfaces in three dimensional ambient space is presented. In that context the relation between isothermic surfaces and integrable models is discussed. Finally, the utility of the Cartan approach to differential geometry is considered. In particular, the similarities between the Cartan formalism and the structure of both two dimensional and four dimensional decomposed SU(2) Yang-Mills theories are discussed, while the description of two dimensional integrable models as embedded structures in the four dimensional decomposed SU(2) Yang-Mills theory are presented.
We study singular time-dependent $frac{1}{8}$-BPS configurations in the abelian sector of ${{mathcal N}= 4}$ supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory that represent BPS string-like defects in ${{mathbb R}times S^3}$ spacetime. Such BPS strings can be described as intersections of the zeros of holomorphic functions in two complex variables with a 3-sphere. We argue that these BPS strings map to $frac{1}{8}$-BPS surface operators under the state-operator correspondence of the CFT. We show that the string defects are holographically dual to noncompact probe D3-branes in global $AdS_5times S^5$ that share supersymmetries with a class of dual-giant gravitons. For simple configurations, we demonstrate how to define a good variational problem and propose a regularization scheme that leads to finite energy and global charges on both sides of the holographic correspondence.
It is possible to formulate light-cone gauge string field theory in noncritical dimensions. Such a theory corresponds to conformal gauge worldsheet theory with nonstandard longitudinal part. We study the longitudinal part of the worldsheet theory on higher genus Riemann surfaces. The results in this paper shall be used to study the dimensional regularization of light-cone gauge string field theory.