Symmetry breaking in string theory

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Project objective

The project that I propose consists in the study of symmetry breaking in string theory and related field theories with extra dimensions. This is one of the most challenging aspects of the program of embedding the standard models in string theory, which has definitely singled out as the most promising candidate for a fundamental and unified theory of all interactions. The main objective is to provide novel possibilities in this respect and investigate new or little studied scenarios for the symmetry breaking occurring along the way from the fundamental string scale down to scales accessible to present and future experiments; symmetries of primary importance in this respect are supersymmetry, gauge symmetries, and possibly internal flavor symmetries. The content is articulated over the following main points. First, a broad investigation of new possibilities to construct string models implementing symmetry breaking at the compactiflcation scale, for instance through the Scherk-Schwarz mechanism, Wilson lines or the presence of branes, and possible connections between them. Second, a deeper study of the nature of symmetry breaking by compactification and the possibility of a dynamical implementation of it, adressing in particular the issue of classical and quantum stability. Third, exploit intermediate examples of string-inspired higher-dimensional field theories, modeling in a realistic way symmetry breaking, to identify phenomenologically promising string embeddings.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

• EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION FOR NUCLEAR RESEARCH · GENEVECoordinatorSwitzerland

Links

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