We demonstrate the agreement between the Higgs branches of two N=2 theories proposed by Argyres and Seiberg to be S-dual, namely the SU(3) gauge theory with six quarks, and the SU(2) gauge theory with one pair of quarks coupled to the superconformal theory with E_6 flavor symmetry. In mathematical terms, we demonstrate the equivalence between a hyperkaehler quotient of a linear space and another hyperkaehler quotient involving the minimal nilpotent orbit of E_6, modulo the identification of the twistor lines.
General formulas for the scalar modes a_i and a^i_D in the Seiberg-Witten SU(N) setting are derived in the cases with and without massive hypermultiplets. Subsequently these formulas are applied in a study of the SU(3) Argyres-Douglas point. We use this example to study the question, whether the scalar modes admit an interpretation in terms of BPS mass states everywhere in moduli space. The paper collects, in an appendix, various facts on the function Lauricella F_D^(n), which naturally appears in the derived formulas.
We study the quantum Seiberg-Witten (SW) curves for $(A_1, G)$-type Argyres-Douglas (AD) theory by taking the scaling limit of the quantum SW curve of $N=2$ gauge theory with gauge group $G$. For $G=A_r$, the quantum SW curve of the AD theory is consistent with the scaling limit of the curve of the gauge theory. For $G=D_r$, we need the quantum correction to the SW curve of the AD theory, which depends on the quantization condition of the original SW curve. We also study the universality of the quantum SW curves for $(A_1, A_3)$ and $(A_1, D_4)$-type AD theories.
Using the $u$-plane integral as a tool, we derive a formula for the partition function of the simplest nontrivial (topologically twisted) Argyres-Douglas theory on compact, oriented, simply connected, four-manifolds without boundary and with $b_2^+>0$. The result can be expressed in terms of classical cohomological invariants and Seiberg-Witten invariants. Our results hint at the existence of standard four-manifolds that are not of Seiberg-Witten simple type.
Strebel differentials are a special class of quadratic differentials with several applications in string theory. In this note we show that finding Strebel differentials with integral lengths is equivalent to finding generalized Argyres-Douglas singularities in the Coulomb moduli space of a U(N) $\N=2$ gauge theory with massive flavours. Using this relation, we find an efficient technique to solve the problem of factorizing the Seiberg-Witten curve at the Argyres-Douglas singularity. We also comment upon a relation between more general Seiberg-Witten curves and Belyi maps.
We revisit the study of singular points in the Coulomb branch of $\mathcal{N}=2$ SQCD in four dimensions with gauge group $SU(N)$ and odd number of flavors. For certain choices of the mass parameters these vacua are not lifted by a mass term for the chiral multiplet in the adjoint representation. By using recent results about the M5 brane description of $\mathcal{N}=1$ theories we study the resulting vacua and argue that the low-energy effective theory has a simple Lagrangian description involving a free chiral multiplet in the adjoint representation of the flavor symmetry group, a system some…
We consider chiral condensates in SU(2) gauge theory with broken N=2 supersymmetry. The matter sector contains an adjoint multiplet and one fundamental flavor. Matter and gaugino condensates are determined by integrating out the adjoint field. The only nonperturbative input is the Affleck-Dine-Seiberg (ADS) superpotential generated by one instanton plus the Konishi anomaly. These results are consistent with those obtained by the `integrating in' procedure, including a reproduction of the Seiberg-Witten curve from the ADS superpotential. We then calculate monopole, dyon, and charge condensates …
N=2 Seiberg-Witten theories allow an interesting interplay between the Argyres-Douglas loci, singularity structures and wall-crossing formulae. In this paper we investigate this connection by first studying the singularity structures of hyper-elliptic Seiberg-Witten curves for pure N=2 gauge theories with SU(r+1) and Sp(2r) gauge groups, and propose new methods to locate the Argyres-Douglas loci in the moduli space, where multiple mutually non-local BPS states become massless. In a region of the moduli space, we compute dyon charges for all 2r+2 and 2r+1 massless dyons for SU(r+1) and Sp(2r) g…
We generalize S-duality to N=2 superconformal field theories (SCFTs) with Coulomb branch operators of non-integer scaling dimension. As simple examples, we find minimal generalizations of the S-dualities discovered in SU(2) gauge theory with four fundamental flavors by Seiberg and Witten and in SU(3) gauge theory with six fundamental flavors by Argyres and Seiberg. Our constructions start by weakly gauging diagonal SU(2) and SU(3) flavor symmetry subgroups of two copies of a particular rank-one Argyres-Douglas theory (along with sufficient numbers of hypermultiplets to guarantee conformality o…
When the Seiberg-Witten curve of a four-dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric gauge theory wraps a Riemann surface as a multi-sheeted cover, a topological constraint requires that in general the curve should develop ramification points. We show that, while some of the branch points of the covering map can be identified with the punctures that appear in the work of Gaiotto, the ramification points give us additional branch points whose locations on the Riemann surface can have dependence not only on gauge coupling parameters but on Coulomb branch parameters and mass parameters of the theor…
In this paper, we show the equivalence between two seemingly distinct 2d TQFTs: one comes from the "Coulomb branch index" of the class S theory $T[Σ,G]$ on $L(k,1) \times S^1$, the other is the $^LG$ "equivariant Verlinde formula", or equivalently partition function of $^LG_{\mathbb{C}}$ complex Chern-Simons theory on $Σ\times S^1$. We first derive this equivalence using the M-theory geometry and show that the gauge groups appearing on the two sides are naturally $G$ and its Langlands dual $^LG$. When $G$ is not simply-connected, we provide a recipe of computing the index of $T[Σ,G]$ as summat…
We study ultraviolet (UV) incarnations of deep infrared (IR) physics on the Coulomb branch of the simplest interacting 4D $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal field theory: the minimal Argyres-Douglas (MAD) theory. One of the most basic properties of the Coulomb branch is an emergent infinite-dimensional higher-spin symmetry. While the MAD theory is interacting and therefore does not have such a symmetry, we find UV operators that encode the emergent complex higher-spin symmetry on the Coulomb branch. Moreover, we show that cousins of these UV operators give rise to cousins of the IR higher-spin mul…
We consider chiral condensates in SU(2) gauge theory with broken N=2 supersymmetry and one fundamental flavor in the matter sector. Matter and gaugino condensates are determined by integrating out the adjoint field. The only nonperturbative input is the Affleck-Dine-Seiberg one-instanton superpotential. The results are consistent with those obtained by the `integrating in' procedure. We then calculate monopole, dyon, and charge condensates using the Seiberg-Witten approach. The key observation is that the monopole and charge condensates vanish at the Argyres-Douglas point where the monopole an…
We present a general prescription for constructing 3d $\mathcal{N}=4$ Lagrangians for the IR SCFTs that arise from the circle reduction of a large class of Argyres-Douglas theories. The resultant Lagrangian gives a realization of the Higgs branch of the 4d SCFT as a quiver variety, up to a set of decoupled interacting SCFTs with empty Higgs branches. As representative examples, we focus on the families $(A_{p-N-1}, A_{N-1})$ and $D_p(SU(N))$. The Lagrangian in question is generically a non-ADE-type quiver gauge theory involving only unitary gauge nodes with fundamental and bifundamental hyperm…
We study the N=1 version of Argyres-Douglas (AD) points by making use of the recent developments in understanding the dynamics of the chiral sector of N=1 gauge theories. We shall consider N=1 U(N) gauge theories with an adjoint matter and look for the tree-level superpotential W(x) which reproduces the N=2 AD points via the factorization equation relating the N=1 and N=2 curves. We find that the following superpotentials generate the N=2 AD points: (1) W'(x)=x^N \pm 2Λ^N, (2) W'(x)=x^n, N-1\ge n \ge N/2+1. In case (1) the physics is essentially the same as the N=2 theory even in the presence …
The Coulomb branch indices of Argyres-Douglas theories on $L(k,1)\times S^{1}$ are recently identified with matrix elements of modular transforms of certain $2d$ vertex operator algebras in a particular limit. A one parameter generalization of the modular transformation matrices of $(2N+3,2)$ minimal models are proposed to compute the full Coulomb branch index of $(A_{1},A_{2N})$ Argyres-Douglas theories on the same space. Morever, M-theory construction of these theories suggests direct connection to the refined Chern-Simons theory. The connection is made precise by showing how the modular tra…
We study the two-dimensional chiral algebra associated with the simplest Argyres-Douglas type theory with an exactly marginal coupling, i.e., the $(A_3,A_3)$ theory. Near a cusp in the space of the exactly marginal deformations (i.e., the conformal manifold), the theory is well-described by the $SU(2)$ gauge theory coupled to isolated Argyres-Douglas theories and a fundamental hypermultiplet. In this sense, the $(A_3,A_3)$ theory is an Argyres-Douglas version of the $\mathcal{N}=2$ $SU(2)$ conformal QCD. By studying its Higgs branch and Schur index, we identify the minimal possible set of chir…
We apply the numerical conformal bootstrap to correlators of Coulomb and Higgs branch operators in $4d$ $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal theories. We start by revisiting previous results on single correlators of Coulomb branch operators. In particular, we present improved bounds on OPE coefficients for some selected Argyres-Douglas models, and compare them to recent work where the same cofficients were obtained in the limit of large $r$ charge. There is solid agreement between all the approaches. The improved bounds can be used to extract an approximate spectrum of the Argyres-Douglas models, wh…
Higher-form symmetries have proved useful in constraining the dynamics of a number of quantum field theories. In the context of the Argyres-Douglas (AD) theories of the $(G,G')$ type, we find that the 1-form symmetries are invariant under the Higgs branch flow, and that they are captured by the non-Higgsable sector at a generic point on the Higgs branch of the AD theory in question. As a consequence, dimensional reduction of an AD theory with a non-trivial 1-form symmetry to 3d leads to a free sector. We utilize these observations, along with other results, to propose systematically the mirror…
3d mirrors for all 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ Argyres-Douglas (AD) theories engineered using 6d $(2,0)$ theory are found. The basic steps are: 1): Find a punctured sphere representation for the AD theories (this is achieved in our previous studies of S duality); 2): Attach a 3d theory for each puncture; 3): Glue together the 3d theory for each puncture. We found the 3d mirror quiver gauge theory for the AD theories engineered using 6d $A$ and $D$ type theories. These 3d mirrors are useful for studying the properties of original 4d theory such as Higgs branch, S-duality, etc; We also construct many new…
We study $SU(2)$ gauge theories coupled to $(A_1,D_N)$ theories with or without a fundamental hypermultiplet. For even $N$, a formula for the contribution of $(A_1,D_N)$ to the Nekrasov partition function was recently obtained by us with Y.~Sugawara and T.~Uetoko. In this paper, we generalize it to the case of odd $N$ in the classical limit, under the condition that the relevant couplings and vacuum expectation values of Coulomb branch operators of $(A_1,D_N)$ are all turned off. We apply our formula to the $(A_2,A_5)$ theory to find that its prepotential is related to that of the $SU(2)$ gaug…
We study the generalization of S-duality and Argyres-Seiberg duality for a large class of N=2 superconformal gauge theories. We identify a family of strongly interacting SCFTs and use them as building blocks for generalized superconformal quiver gauge theories. This setup provides a detailed description of the ``very strongly coupled'' regions in the moduli space of more familiar gauge theories. As a byproduct, we provide a purely four dimensional construction of N=2 theories defined by wrapping M5 branes over a Riemann surface.
We use Coulomb branch indices of Argyres-Douglas theories on $S^1 \times L(k,1)$ to quantize moduli spaces ${\cal M}_H$ of wild/irregular Hitchin systems. In particular, we obtain formulae for the "wild Hitchin characters" -- the graded dimensions of the Hilbert spaces from quantization -- for four infinite families of ${\cal M}_H$, giving access to many interesting geometric and topological data of these moduli spaces. We observe that the wild Hitchin characters can always be written as a sum over fixed points in ${\cal M}_H$ under the $U(1)$ Hitchin action, and a limit of them can be identif…
The constraining mathematical structure of the Coulomb branch of four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ supersymmetric theories is discussed. The presentation follows a somewhat different route from other excellent reviews on the subject and it is geared towards using this tool to classify four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ superconformal field theories. This is the writeup of the lectures given at the Winter School "YRISW 2020" to appear in a special issue of JPhysA.
Argyres-Douglas (AD) theories constitute an infinite class of superconformal field theories in four dimensions with a number of interesting properties. We study several new aspects of AD theories engineered in $A$-type class $\mathcal{S}$ with one irregular puncture of Type I or Type II and also a regular puncture. These include conformal manifolds, structures of the Higgs branch, as well as the three dimensional gauge theories coming from the reduction on a circle. The latter admit a description in terms of a linear quiver with unitary and special unitary gauge groups, along with a number of …
In this note, we consider so-called "Higgs Branch Localization" for four dimensional N=2 field theories on 4d ellipsoid. We find a new set of saddle point equations arising from additional Higgs branch deformation term, whose solutions include both Higgs branch and BPS instanton-vortex mixed configurations. By evaluating the contour integral, we also demonstrate the ellipsoid partition almost factorizes into purely b and 1/b dependent parts, using SQCD as an explicit example. We identify various factorized parts with the ellipsoid partition function of two dimensional N=(2,2) SQCDA, which is p…
Five- and four-dimensional superconformal field theories with eight supercharges arise from canonical threefold singularities in M-theory and Type IIB string theory, respectively. We study their Coulomb and Higgs branches using crepant resolutions and deformations of the singularities. We propose a relation between the resulting moduli spaces, by compactifying the theories to 3d, followed by 3d $\mathcal{N}=4$ mirror symmetry and an $S$-type gauging of an abelian flavor symmetry. In particular, we use this correspondence to determine the Higgs branch of some 5d SCFTs and their magnetic quivers…
We study the mechanism of confinement via formation of Abrikosov-Nielsen-Olesen vortices on the Higgs branch of N=2 supersymmetric SU(2) gauge theory with massive fundamental matter. Higgs branch represents a limiting case of superconductor of type I with vanishing Higgs mass. We show that in this limit vortices still exist although they become logarithmically "thick". Because of this the confining potential is not linear any longer. It behaves as $L/\log L$ with a distance $L$ between confining heavy charges (monopoles). This new confining regime can occur only in supersymmetric theories. We …
Coulomb branch chiral rings of $\mathcal N=2$ SCFTs are conjectured to be freely generated. While no counter-example is known, no direct evidence for the conjecture is known either. We initiate a systematic study of SCFTs with Coulomb branch chiral rings satisfying non-trivial relations, restricting our analysis to rank 1. The main result of our study is that (rank-1) SCFTs with non-freely generated CB chiral rings when deformed by relevant deformations, always flow to theories with non-freely generated CB rings. This implies that if they exist, they must thus form a distinct subset under RG f…
In this paper we apply the idea of Higgs branch localization to 5d supersymmetric theories of vector multiplet and hypermultiplets, obtained as the rigid limit of $\mathcal{N} = 1$ supergravity with all auxiliary fields. On supersymmetric K-contact/Sasakian background, the Higgs branch BPS equations can be interpreted as 5d generalizations of the Seiberg-Witten equations. We discuss the properties and local behavior of the solutions near closed Reeb orbits. For $U(1)$ gauge theories, we show the suppression of the deformed Coulomb branch, and the partition function is dominated by 5d Seiberg-W…
Using the chiral algebra bootstrap, we revisit the simplest Argyres-Douglas (AD) generalization of Argyres-Seiberg S-duality. We argue that the exotic AD superconformal field theory (SCFT), $T_{3,{3\over2}}$, emerging in this duality splits into a free piece and an interacting piece, T_X, even though this factorization seems invisible in the Seiberg-Witten (SW) curve derived from the corresponding M5-brane construction. Without a Lagrangian, an associated topological field theory, a BPS spectrum, or even an SW curve, we nonetheless obtain exact information about T_X by bootstrapping its chiral…
We consider the Seiberg-Witten solution of pure $\mathcal{N} =2$ gauge theory in four dimensions, with gauge group $SU(N)$. A simple exact series expansion for the dependence of the $2 (N-1)$ Seiberg-Witten periods $a_I(u), a_{DI}(u)$ on the $N-1$ Coulomb-branch moduli $u_n$ is obtained around the $\mathbb{Z}_{2N}$-symmetric point of the Coulomb branch, where all $u_n$ vanish. This generalizes earlier results for $N=2$ in terms of hypergeometric functions, and for $N=3$ in terms of Appell functions. Using these and other analytical results, combined with numerical computations, we explore the …
We study $N = 2$ 3-d theories with two adjoints and fundamental flavors along with D-type superpotential. For superpotential $W_{D_{n+2}} = \mathrm{Tr} \left(X^{n+1}+X Y^2\right)$ with $n$ odd, we propose the 3d dualities, which we motivate from the dimensional reduction of the related 4-d theory. We consider the factorization of the superconformal index and match precisely the vortex partition function of the dual pairs. In the language of the Higgs branch localization, the nonzero contribution of the vortex partition function comes from the discrete Higgs vacua of the massively deformed theo…
We study Higgs branch localization of N=2 supersymmetric theories placed on compact Euclidean manifolds. We analyze the resulting localization equations in detail on the four-sphere and find that in this case the path integral is dominated by vortex-like configurations as well as singular Seiberg-Witten monopoles located at the north and south pole. The partition function is written accordingly.
The confinement scenario in N=2 supersymmetric gauge theory at the monopole point is reviewed. Basic features of this U(1) confinement are contrasted with those we expect in QCD. In particular, extra states in the hadron spectrum and non-linear Regge trajectories are discussed. Then another confinement scenario arising on Higgs branches of the theory with fundamental matter is also reviewed. Peculiar properties of the Abrikosov-Nielsen-Olesen string on the Higgs branch lead to a new confining regime with the logarithmic suppression of the linear rising potential. Motivations for a search for t…
We study the Coulomb branches of the rank-one 4d $\mathcal{N} = 2$ quantum field theories, including the KK theories obtained from the circle compactification of the 5d $\mathcal{N}= 1$ $E_n$ Seiberg theories. The focus is set on the relation between their Seiberg-Witten geometries and rational elliptic surfaces, with more attention being given to the modular surfaces, which we completely classify using the classification of subgroups of the modular group ${\rm PSL}(2,\mathbb{Z})$. We derive closed-form expressions for the modular functions for all congruence and some of the non-congruence sub…
We develop a systematic method to describe the moduli space of vacua of four dimensional $\mathcal{N}=2$ class ${\cal S}$ theories including Coulomb branch, Higgs branch and mixed branches. In particular, we determine the Higgs and mixed branch roots, and the dimensions of the Coulomb and Higgs components of mixed branches. They are derived by using generalized Hitchin's equations obtained from twisted compactification of 5d maximal Super-Yang-Mills, with local degrees of freedom at punctures given by (nilpotent) orbits. The crucial thing is the holomorphic factorization of the Seiberg-Witten …
We consider a general class of symmetries of hyper-Kahler quotients which can be interpreted as classical analogs of Seiberg duality for N=2 supersymmetric quiver gauge theories in the baryonic Higgs branch. Along the way we find that a limit application of this duality yields new exotic realizations of ALE spaces as hyper-Kahler quotients. We also discuss how these results admit in some particular cases a natural interpretation in string theory. We finally comment on a possible relationship with Fourier-Mukai tranforms.
Center for Mathematics and Interdisciplinary Sciences, Fudan University（复旦大学数学与交叉科学研究院）；Shanghai Institute for Mathematics and Interdisciplinary Sciences（上海数学与交叉科学研究院）
We consider interesting Seiberg dualities for $Usp$ gauge theories with an antisymmetric, $8$ fundamentals and no superpotential. We reduce to three dimensions and systematically analyze deformations triggered by real and complex masses, reaching a plethora of $\mathcal{N}\!=\!2$ dualities for $U(N)$ and $Usp(2N)$ gauge theories, possibly with monopole superpotentials and Chern-Simons interactions. Special cases of these "exceptional dualities" are: supersymmetry enhancement dualities, "duality appetizers" and many known dualities relating rank-$1$ gauge groups. The $4d$ $\mathcal{N}\!=\!1$ $U…
In view of two-dimensional topological gravity coupled to matter, we study the Seiberg-Witten theory for the low-energy behavior of N=2 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory with ADE gauge groups. We construct a new solution of the Picard-Fuchs equations obeyed by the Seiberg-Witten periods. Our solution is expressed as the linear sum over the infinite set of one-point functions of gravitational descendants in $d<1$ topological strings. It turns out that our solution provides the power series expansion around the origin of the quantum moduli space of the Coulomb branch. For SU(N) gauge group we sho…
We study the Picard-Fuchs differential equations for the Seiberg-Witten period integrals in N=2 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory. For A-D-E gauge groups we derive the Picard-Fuchs equations by using the flat coordinates in the A-D-E singularity theory. We then find that these are equivalent to the Gauss-Manin system for two-dimensional A-D-E topological Landau-Ginzburg models and the scaling relation for the Seiberg-Witten differential. This suggests an interesting relationship between four-dimensional N=2 gauge theories in the Coulomb branch and two-dimensional topological field theories.
It has recently been suggested that, in a large N limit, a particular four dimensional gauge theory is indistinguishable from the six dimensional CFT with (0,2) supersymmetry compactified on a torus. We give further evidence for this correspondence by studying the Seiberg-Witten curve for the "deconstructed" theory and demonstrating that along the reduced Coulomb branch of moduli space (on the intersection of the Higgs and Coulomb branches) it describes the low energy physics on a stack of M5-branes on a torus, which is the (0,2) theory on a torus as claimed. The M-theory construction helps to…
Low--energy limits of N=2 supersymmetric field theories in the Higgs branch are described in terms of a non--linear 4--dimensional sigma--model on a \hk target space, classically obtained as a \hk quotient of the original flat hypermultiplet space by the gauge group. We review in a pedagogical way this construction, and illustrate it in various examples, with special attention given to the singularities emerging in the low--energy theory. In particular, we thoroughly study the Higgs branch singularity of Seiberg--Witten $SU(2)$ theory with $N_f$ flavors, interpreted by Witten as a small instan…
We study the low-energy effective theory of N=2 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory with ADE gauge groups in view of the spectral curves of the periodic Toda lattice and the A-D-E singularity theory. We examine the exact solutions by using the Picard-Fuchs equations for the period integrals of the Seiberg-Witten differential. In particular, we find that the superconformal fixed point in the strong coupling region of the Coulomb branch is characterized by the ADE superpotential. We compute the scaling exponents, which agree with the previous results.
We present a qualitative model of the Coulomb branch of the moduli space of low-energy effective N=2 SQCD with gauge group SU(3) and up to five flavours of massive matter. Overall, away from double cores, we find a situation broadly similar to the case with no matter, but with additional complexity due to the proliferation of extra BPS states. We also include a revised version of the pure SU(3) model which can accommodate just the orthodox weak coupling spectrum.
It is widely believed that the emergent magnetic gauge symmetry of SQCD is analogous to a hidden local symmetry (HLS). We explore this idea in detail, deriving the entire (spontaneously broken) magnetic theory by applying the HLS formalism to spontaneously broken SU(N) SQCD. We deduce the Kähler potential in the HLS description, and show that gauge and flavour symmetry are smoothly restored along certain scaling directions in moduli space. We propose that it is these symmetry restoring directions, associated with the R-symmetry of the theory, that allow full Seiberg duality. Reconsidering the …
We consider N=2 supersymmetric gauge theories perturbed by tree level superpotential terms near isolated singular points in the Coulomb moduli space. We identify the Seiberg-Witten curve at these points with polynomial equations used to construct what Grothendieck called "dessins d'enfants" or "children's drawings" on the Riemann sphere. From a mathematical point of view, the dessins are important because the absolute Galois group Gal(\bar{Q}/Q) acts faithfully on them. We argue that the relation between the dessins and Seiberg-Witten theory is useful because gauge theory criteria used to dist…
We consider N = 2 superconformal field theory with following properties: a) Coulomb branch operators have fractional scaling dimensions, b) there are exact marginal deformations . The weakly coupled gauge theory descriptions are found by decomposing 3d mirror into different components, and different decompositions correspond to different duality frames. The gauge theory is formed by gauging Argyres-Douglas matter, and we write down all duality frames for several classes with infinite sequence of theories.
Within the Dijkgraaf-Vafa correspondence, we study the complete factorization of the Seiberg-Witten curve for U(N_c) gauge theory with N_f<N_c massive flavors. We obtain explicit expressions, from random matrix theory, for the moduli, parametrizing the curve. These moduli characterize the submanifold of the Coulomb branch where all monopoles become massless. We find that the matrix model reveals some non-trivial structures of the gauge theory. In particular the moduli are additive with respect to adding extra matter and increasing the number of colors.
In this work we establish that the Inozemtsev system is the Seiberg-Witten integrable system encoding the Coulomb branch physics of 4d $\mathcal{N}=2$ USp(2N) gauge theory with four fundamental and (for $N \geq 2$) one antisymmetric tensor hypermultiplets. We describe the transformation from the spectral curves and canonical one-form of the Inozemtsev system in the $N=1$ and $N=2$ cases to the Seiberg-Witten curves and differentials explicitly, along with the explicit matching of the modulus of the elliptic curve of spectral parameters to the gauge coupling of the field theory, and of the coup…
We show that, for a generic choice of a point on the Coulomb branch of any N=2 supersymmetric gauge theory, it is possible to find a superpotential perturbation which generates a metastable vacuum at the point. For theories with SU(N) gauge group, such a superpotential can be expressed as a sum of single-trace terms for N=2 and 3. If the metastable point is chosen at the origin of the moduli space, we can show that the superpotential can be a single-trace operator for any N. In both cases, the superpotential is a polynomial of degree 3N of the vector multiplet scalar field.
N=(2,2) theories in 1+1D exhibit a direct correspondence between the R-charges of chiral operators at a conformal point and the multiplicities of BPS kinks in a massive deformation, as shown by Cecotti and Vafa. We obtain an analogous relation in 3+1D for N=2 gauge theories that are massive perturbations of Argyres-Douglas fixed points, utilizing the geometric engineering approach to N=2 vacua within IIB string theory. In this case the scaling dimensions of a certain subset of chiral operators at the UV fixed point are related to the multiplicities of BPS dyons. When the Argyres-Douglas SCFT i…
We study supersymmetric $SU(N-4)$ gauge theories with a symmetric tensor and $N$ antifundamental representations. The theory with $W=0$ has a dual description in terms of a non-chiral $Spin(8)$ theory with one spinor and $N$ vectors. This duality flows to the $SO(N)$ duality of Seiberg and to a duality proposed by one of us. It also flows to dualities for a number of $Spin(m)$ theories, $m\le 8$. For $N=6$, when an ${\cal N}=2$ SUSY superpotential is added, the singularities of Seiberg and Witten are recovered. For $N\le 6$, a mass for the spinor generates the branches of $SO(8)$ theories foun…
We analyze the low energy behavior of N=1 supersymmetric gauge theories with SU(N_c) x SU(N_c) gauge group and a Landau-Ginzburg type superpotential. These theories contain fundamentals transforming under one of the gauge groups as well as bifundamental matter which transforms as a fundamentals under each. We obtain the parametrization of the gauge coupling on the Coulomb branch in terms of a hyperelliptic curve. The derivation of this curve involves making use of Seiberg's duality for SQCD as well as the classical constraints for N_f=N_c+1 and the quantum modified constraints for N_f=N_c.
