Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture

We test various conjectures about quantum gravity for six-dimensional string compactifications in the framework of F-theory. Starting with a gauge theory coupled to gravity, we analyze the limit in Kähler moduli space where the gauge coupling tends to zero while gravity is kept dynamical. We show th...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Lee, Seung-Joo, Lerche, Wolfgang, Weigand, Timo
Lenguaje:eng
Publicado: 2018
Materias:
hep-th
Particle Physics - Theory
Acceso en línea:https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/JHEP10(2018)164
http://cds.cern.ch/record/2638019
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author Lee, Seung-Joo
Lerche, Wolfgang
Weigand, Timo
author_facet Lee, Seung-Joo
Lerche, Wolfgang
Weigand, Timo
author_sort Lee, Seung-Joo
collection CERN
description We test various conjectures about quantum gravity for six-dimensional string compactifications in the framework of F-theory. Starting with a gauge theory coupled to gravity, we analyze the limit in Kähler moduli space where the gauge coupling tends to zero while gravity is kept dynamical. We show that such a limit must be located at infinite distance in the moduli space. As expected, the low-energy effective theory breaks down in this limit due to a tower of charged particles becoming massless. These are the excitations of an asymptotically tensionless string, which is shown to coincide with a critical heterotic string compactified to six dimensions.
id cern-2638019
institution Organización Europea para la Investigación Nuclear
language eng
publishDate 2018
record_format invenio
spelling cern-26380192023-10-04T07:57:31Zdoi:10.1007/JHEP10(2018)164http://cds.cern.ch/record/2638019engLee, Seung-JooLerche, WolfgangWeigand, TimoTensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecturehep-thParticle Physics - TheoryWe test various conjectures about quantum gravity for six-dimensional string compactifications in the framework of F-theory. Starting with a gauge theory coupled to gravity, we analyze the limit in Kähler moduli space where the gauge coupling tends to zero while gravity is kept dynamical. We show that such a limit must be located at infinite distance in the moduli space. As expected, the low-energy effective theory breaks down in this limit due to a tower of charged particles becoming massless. These are the excitations of an asymptotically tensionless string, which is shown to coincide with a critical heterotic string compactified to six dimensions.We test various conjectures about quantum gravity for six-dimensional string compactifications in the framework of F-theory. Starting with a gauge theory coupled to gravity, we analyze the limit in K\"ahler moduli space where the gauge coupling tends to zero while gravity is kept dynamical. We show that such a limit must be located at infinite distance in the moduli space. As expected, the low-energy effective theory breaks down in this limit due to a tower of charged particles becoming massless. These are the excitations of an asymptotically tensionless string, which is shown to coincide with a critical heterotic string compactified to six dimensions. For a more quantitative analysis, we focus on a $U(1)$ gauge symmetry and use a chain of dualities and mirror symmetry to determine the elliptic genus of the nearly tensionless string, which is given in terms of certain meromorphic weak Jacobi forms. Their modular properties in turn allow us to determine the mass-to-charge ratios of certain string excitations near the tensionless limit. We then provide evidence that the tower of asymptotically massless charged states satisfies the (sub-)Lattice Weak Gravity Conjecture, the Completeness Conjecture, and the Swampland Distance Conjecture. Quite remarkably, we find that the number theoretic properties of the elliptic genus conspire with the balance of gravitational and scalar forces of extremal black holes, such as to produce a narrowly tuned charge spectrum of superextremal states. As a byproduct, we show how to compute elliptic genera of both critical and non-critical strings, when refined by Mordell-Weil $U(1)$ symmetries in F-theory.arXiv:1808.05958CERN-TH-2018-190oai:cds.cern.ch:26380192018-08-17
spellingShingle hep-th
Particle Physics - Theory
Lee, Seung-Joo
Lerche, Wolfgang
Weigand, Timo
Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title_full Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title_fullStr Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title_full_unstemmed Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title_short Tensionless Strings and the Weak Gravity Conjecture
title_sort tensionless strings and the weak gravity conjecture
topic hep-th
Particle Physics - Theory
url https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/JHEP10(2018)164
http://cds.cern.ch/record/2638019
work_keys_str_mv AT leeseungjoo tensionlessstringsandtheweakgravityconjecture
AT lerchewolfgang tensionlessstringsandtheweakgravityconjecture
AT weigandtimo tensionlessstringsandtheweakgravityconjecture

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